By Emma Nguyen
On Tuesday, the Fountain Valley girls’ tennis team secured a victory against Newport Harbor Sailors with a decisive 16-2 score.
Key players included junior Chloe Vu, senior Katelyn Nguyen and junior Kendra Ly who all were able to dominate their opponents on the court. Vu had incredible serves and rallies that allowed her to take home matches for all three wins. The number one doubles duo, Katelyn and Ly, displayed outstanding team chemistry with great teamwork and communication.
The Barons’ first singles match featured junior Chloe Vu, who beat her opponent in dominating fashion with her powerful serves and clever returns. Vu was able to sink the Sailors three times with scores of 6-2, 6-1 and 6-0.
Number two singles position and junior Jaslyn Nguyen had strong serves that soared above her opponent’s head, with offensive strikes like her forehand jabbing through the Sailors’ defense to score points. Her strong attacks won her both of her matches with a score of 6-1.
“Going into the game, I was hoping to have fun and win the match with a positive attitude,” Jaslyn Nguyen said. “Overall, I played better than usual, hitting winners with my forehand and backhand.”
In the third and final match for the number two singles, freshman Gwendolyn Nguyen took over and controlled the tempo of the game. She showed impressive technical skills on the court with her serves and returns. To finish the second singles set, Jaslyn Nguyen and Gwendolyn Nguyen received scores of 6-1, 6-1 and 2-6.
Freshman Gabriela Buhnia set for the number three singles position, did not disappoint. Buhnia showed out with her serves flying right through her opponents in all three of her matches with scores of 6-1, 6-2 and 6-3.
“They did everything right,” head coach Harshul Patel said. “They’re playing all the good matches with good score lines, sticking with the strategies which we have focused on, and they’re exhibiting it really well today, everybody’s playing absolutely perfect tennis today.”
Led by senior co-captain Katelyn Nguyen and junior Kendra Ly, the number one doubles pair teamed up nicely, with Katelyn Nguyen returning powerful shots by steering the back and Ly manning the front and sending back powerful attacks to score. The duo won all three of their matches with scores of 6-1, 6-2 and 6-0.
“I just want to tell people how appreciative I am of my team,” Katelyn Nguyen said. “Being captain for two years, I haven’t seen these girls let up yet. Whether playing the weakest or strongest player, they treat the game the same.”
Up next were the dynamic sister duo, senior Katie Lam and sophomore Kacie Lam in the number two doubles position. Katie Lam was able to hit impressive volleys over the net, and her sister Kacie Lam showed a clinic of strong rallies. The pair won two matches with scores of 6-1 and 6-0 respectively.
In the third game of the set Kacie Lam was replaced by freshman Trang Le. Katie Lam and Le also proved to be a strong duo; Le was able to display her offense scoring points for the team, and the score for the third match was 6-2.
Senior Athena Tran and junior Sophia Do, set to play in the number three doubles position, secured wins for all three matches with 6-2, 6-1 and 6-2. The two players kept up a great mindset throughout their games and came out on top.
“I remember we used to lose really badly with Newport Harbor. When I took over, they were always the big threat,” Patel said. “Today, we are doing completely the same thing to them, that was being done to us in the last couple of years, that’s what has gone on. So I’m really happy to see a shift in the performances and score lines from our teams. So I’m very happy about that part of our team.”
The Lady Barons have their next match against the Valencia High School Tigers on Thursday at 3:00 p.m.
