Boys tennis team reflects on season, teamwork, love for the sport and cheeseburgers

This year, the boys’ tennis team followed through the season with the utmost dedication, because to them, “It’s all about experience,” explains sophomore Rahul Joshi. “It is really a mental sport as much as [a] physical [one],” says freshman player Arthur Zhu. With similar enthusiasm, junior Evan Lee, another member of the Aragon boys tennis team states, “Tennis is probably the only sport I like to play and watch. The reason why I love tennis is because I grew up around [it] all my life.”

“What I love the most about tennis is that it’s a sport of thinking. By thinking I mean, every time before you hit the ball, you need to predict your opponent’s next move and think about the amount of power you need to put on the ball and the direction of it; otherwise, you will lose,” explains senior Reza Moein.

Junior Thomas Pauly adds, “…anything can happen. It all depends on who you are as a player not [on] your skill.” This season, it was this hard-earned skill that led to some memorable highlights for the boys’ tennis team.

“There was one match that really stood out of me, and that was our first against El Camino High School. We’d already won overall, but Chris and El Camino’s number one had split sets and were playing a third. Chris came back to win that match and really showed lots of heart. Essentially, [that moment] showed how much he cared about the team and how he was [its] heart and soul,” explains Joshi.

The tennis team had its moments of “heart and soul,” made personal accomplishments, and broke personal records. “Me and my partner won the match against Menlo-Atherton and it was our greatest victory in the season,” Moein states.

Freshman Isaac Wang can relate to a personal success regarding a match against Menlo Atherton. “Me and my partner had to play number two doubles and we were matched against MA’s number two singles and another boy. We were expected to lose 0-6, 0-6, but me and Arthur played really well. Even though we lost, we…put up a good fight. The final score was 4-6, 5-7.”

“As a player, I’ve become more serious about playing tennis rather than thinking it is just for fun. The whole varsity team helped me. Watching them play with confidence and hard work, made me realized how much this team is committing toward the school. It made me want to do the same,” states Zhu of the importance of teamwork.

“Coach promised us cheeseburgers if we beat Mills since we had a huge win streak over them and they were kind of our rivals. We won and got to eat cheeseburgers the next day at practice,” says Wang about his bonding experience with the team.

However, despite such successes, the team generally felt no improvement from last year, or any deterioration for that matter. “In my honest opinion, I think we did same in comparison to last year. I believe we lost and won to the same schools as we did last year but I’m not entirely sure. I just know the records are similar to last year’s,” explains Lee.

All in all, the tennis team completed the season on a positive note, each player making personal achievements and enjoying time together as a team. As Joshi sums it all up saying, “Tennis is just awesome, that is what makes it better than all other sports, you just cannot be as awesome as a tennis player.”