Author: trevorthorpetravels

Cate comes up short in first match against La Reina

Despite playing what was arguably our best match of the season, Cate dropped a 5-13 decision against La Reina High.

In the first round of play, La Reina came out swinging with wins over Julia Gan and McKenna Madden at #1 and #2 singles, and despite early indications that the Herman sisters were going to have a very close match v. the La Reina #1 doubles team, that match got away as well.

Cecelia Sanborn came up with very solid play at #3 singles to record Cate’s first win of the match at 6-4, followed shortly thereafter by another 6-4 win from Kate Dehlendorf/Summer Christensen. Pharibe Pope and Emma Liberman failed to convert a few opportunities at #3 doubles, losing 3-6, but played great tennis through all three rounds of play. Continue reading “Cate comes up short in first match against La Reina”

Cate Romps 15-3 in First Tri-Valley League Match

Cate Girls romp 15-3 over Nordhoff HIgh

The Cate Lady Rams defeated Nordhoff High School today in Carpinteria with a doubles sweep and six set wins in singles play.

Singles was again led by junior Julia Gan, who won 6-0, 6-0, 6-1 and is now 9-0 on the season, having only dropped a single game. McKenna Madden was back in form today after tough outing last week, winning her sets 6-4, 6-1, 6-0.

In doubles, Eva and Victoria Herman picked up the sisterly sweep, spearheading a doubles campaign that dropped just 3 games in 9 sets.

After playing singles in the first three matches of the season, Cecelia Sanborn partnered with senior captain Kate Dehlendorf to record two wins. Substitutes Maddie Gordon, Madeleine Nelson, and Maki Kobayashi all featured with impressive wins in the third round of play.

Cate girls’ tennis, now 3-1 overall and 1-0 in league, next faces new league opponent La Reina High on Thursday in Westlake.

Cate Girls’ Tennis Goes Two-for-Two in Early-Season Play

Kate Dehlendorf sticks the forehand volley

Facing Villanova at the Cate School today, girls’ tennis gave very little away in a 15-3 blowout.

Despite substituting at #1 and #2 in the third round, Cate doubles came through with eight wins in nine sets. Playing at #3 doubles, senior duo Victoria Herman and Pharibe Pope (pictured below, respectively) led the doubles lineup with three wins (6-3, 6-0, 6-1).

Victoria Herman smacks a down-the-line winner Pharibe Pope gets low on the backhand side

Senior/sophomore partners Kate Dehlendorf (pictured at top) and Summer Christensen won two sets with ease at #1 doubles (6-2, 6-0).

Maddy Gordon and Kate Schroeder took over for Dehlendorf/Christensen in the third round, scoring a 6-4 win. Substitutes Madeleine Nelson and Maki Kobayashi also played in the third round and remained undefeated this season after a quick 6-2 victory.

In singles, juniors Julia Gan and McKenna Madden won six sets without dropping a game. Cecelia Sanborn, playing at #3 singles, managed a 6-4 win in the first round and battled through two more long, closely-contested sets that continued late into the day (2-6, 5-7).

Cate, now 2-0 after a pair of 15-3 wins, will be away on school outings week and then will return to competition against long-time rival Santa Ynez High on Friday, September 19th at the Cate School.

Cate Girls’ Tennis Wins 2014 Season Opener

Cate Seniors Tennis Oxnard Match 2014

Cate girls’ tennis opened this year’s non-league schedule with a resounding 15-3 at Oxnard High School today, with strength from top-to-bottom.

In singles, returning one-two combo Julia Gan and McKenna Madden notched three wins a piece, dropping only three games total. Cecelia Sanborn took a few sets to get her footing in a new role at #3 singles, but came through with a third-round win against Oxnard’s #2 player, Amber Landeros.

Cate doubles was anchored by returning #1’s Summer Christensen/Kate Dehlendorf and #2’s Victoria Herman/Pharibe Pope, who each picked up two quick wins before being subbed out. Eva Herman/Emma Liberman picked up three wins at #3 doubles, giving away only three games across their three sets. The substitute team of Madeleine Nelson/Maki Kobayashi picked up another set in the third round.

Cate next hits the courts at home on Thursday at home against Villanova Prep at 3pm.

Also, Cate girls’ tennis is proud to announce that we will be offering our services as In-N-Out’s first sponsored athletics program. We’ll be eagerly awaiting future opportunities to showcase the greatness that is In-N-Out.

Cate Girls' Tennis at In-N-Out

Cate Girls’ Tennis Training for Greatness

This last spring, I put it to my girls at Cate that the 2014 season would be different. After changing leagues during the off-season, we find ourselves competing against 2-time defending CIF D5 champion Carpinteria High, as well as perennial CIF D3 powerhouse Malibu High.

Now, one week into pre-season training, I can already see that the girls are fitter and better prepared for the challenges ahead. As a result, we’ve been able to do several hours of practice each day and a good amount of conditioning. Here’s some video from a new Cate girls’ tennis tradition…the team run!

Where do they go after Laguna Blanca?

The boys of Laguna Blanca Tennis Having a Good Time, As Usual Henry Farrell, Phillip Hicks, Dalton Smith 2014

In my first five years at Laguna Blanca as boys’ tennis coach, I’ve had the opportunity to be part of an impressive turn-around in the program. In 2009, the team finished 1-11 on the season, with their only victory coming against an all-freshmen squad from the newly opened Orcutt Academy.

Since that time, we’ve steadily progressed and become a consistently top-10 ranked team in CIF Division Four. In addition, we now have an impressive tennis facility on-site, which makes the draw of Laguna’s tennis program all the more alluring from a sporting perspective.

With the new norm of sporting success, it’s easy to forget that we are not just a strong athletic program, but that graduates of our program are equally successful academically. Continue reading “Where do they go after Laguna Blanca?”

A Photo Tour of the Laguna Blanca Tennis Camp 2014

Laguna Blanca Tennis Camp 2014

We are now three days into our inaugural camp and already it seems we’ve been together for weeks! The camp has been a pleasure for the coaching staff to put on and we feel the campers have been enjoying themselves as well. Here are a few photos of what we’ve been up to: Continue reading “A Photo Tour of the Laguna Blanca Tennis Camp 2014”

SB Tennis Patrons Summer Tournament Schedule

Each summer, SB Tennis Patrons encourages clubs to host one-weekend junior tournaments for Santa Barbara area tennis players. These events are not sanctioned by the USTA, meaning they won’t count for ranking. These events are a great opportunity for those just getting into tournament play, or those who can’t commit to traveling to tournaments multiple weekends in a row.

Here’s the list of Santa Barbara Tennis Patrons tournaments for Summer 2014!