Seniors Yasmina Malouf and Marie Pachtner high five after winning a point.
The Aragon girls tennis team (6-8 Bay Division, 7-11 overall) coached by Dave Owdom, made a strong start to their season before dropping to place fifth in the Peninsula Athletic League.
“So far we’ve won some major game against our rivals [Hillsdale and San Mateo],” said freshman doubles player Romy Pachtner. “Christine [sophomore, singles player] and Jessica [freshman, singles player] are always able to come to matches and practices with such competitive attitudes.”
The season held many challenging and ups and downs, with each team being extremely competitive and similar in talent to each other. Losing 4-3 to their rival team Hillsdale for the first time in a while last season, this year’s match came down to the wire.
“A big high for the team would definitely be beating Hillsdale when we played them here at Aragon,” said senior doubles player Marie Pachtner. “In the past, our matches have always been pretty tight; therefore, we were really proud when we closely beat them 4-3.”
On Oct. 23, the Dons competed against Carlmont for their senior night, suffering a narrow loss.
The match began with a smooth start. However, many players on both teams constantly made unforced errors. After the first ten minutes of the match, competition gradually escalated as the players began making sharper and wider shots.
“I felt pretty good, excited and confident as this was our last game,” said junior doubles player Aarti Subramanian.
As the game continued, the players became more competitive and progressively displayed more effort. Their game was nearly devoid of mistakes by the end.
“I am definitely going to miss the team dynamic of the girls on the team,” Pachtner said. “Before every match, one of the team captains would give some kind of inspirational speech for the whole team, and it always created a very positive and energetic environment.”
Despite not qualifying for Central Coast Section playoffs, the team remains optimistic as they look forward on next season.
Additional reporting by Brooke Hanshaw
