Cate Girls’ tennis took a 10-0 victory over league opponent Foothill Tech in the heat and wind. The match was delayed due to air quality issues, but was able to be completed as EPA air index ratings improved later in what was one of the hottest and windiest days of the year.

The match marks 42 consecutive wins for Cate in Tri-Valley League play going back to October of 2014. The win also completes a perfect 10-0 season, in which the Rams not only went 7-0 in league play, but also took down larger Santa Barbara County public school SBHS, DPHS, and SMHS.

Cate was led by senior captains Grace Fuss and Carol Cai, who both registered 6-0 sets in the first round. Junior Yuki Kobayashi also delivered with a 6-2 score at the #3 position.

In doubles, the #2 and #3 matches were similarly one-sided, but a battle ensued at the #1 position. Junior/sophomore combo Fritze Mayer and Ashi Kamra took a 7-6 victory over Foothill’s top singles players Noelle Haywood and Jolie Seemeyer, who were stacked to form a high-level doubles pair. Mayer and Kamra are now 7-0 together on the season and likely to be a high seed in next week’s TVL Individuals tournament.

I thought we played well in the tough conditions today. I was very pleased in particularly, with the way Ashi and Fritze rallied to beat that stacked #1 doubles team. 

They really proved they’re one of the strongest teams in our league and I’m looking forward to seeing how they do in individuals. We’ve also got the defending league champions Grace and Carol in there, so we’re definitely looking to make a big push as deep as we can into CIF Individuals in doubles.

The Tri-Valley League tournament is next up for Cate tennis, with match-play beginning at 1:30pm on Cate Mesa.