The girls JV tennis team lost a close one at Loomis Tuesday afternoon, but with a win at exhibition, we feel we earned a tie. Our 4th doubles team of co-captain Coco Da Vink and Daly Baker were last off the courts, winning handily and securing the 4-4 overall result. A highlight of the day was Kate MacKenzie’s gutsy comeback from 0-5 to win in straight sets. She gained momentum late in the first set and never looked back. With her teammates battling on nearby courts, Kate never counted herself out. She finished just in time to chase down an ice cream truck that happened to drive by too. Co-captain Kylie Kittredge also gutted out a match that was closer than her score indicated, holding off a second set push from a solid opponent. We also won at 2nd doubles: Valentina Williamson and Juliet Amadeo. Juliet’s steady ground play and Valentina’s lethal volleys make them very tough to beat. Juliet was also volleying well today. Katherine Pajak and 3rd doubles, Summer Zhou and Lauren Mitchell, showed great bounce in their second sets after losing their first sets 6-0. I admire their persistence and competitive spirits. At 3rd singles, Giorgia Santore lost a very well-fought match against a tireless opponent who was able to prevail at the very end in a 3rd set tiebreak. Giorgia played a great match. And at 1st doubles, Nainika Lebaka and co-captain Ainslie Kell, lost to a good doubles team who were just a bit more consistent from the ground and aggressive at the net. They will bounce back this weekend!

I’m especially proud of this team’s spirit as they cheer each other on, call good lines, and generally upbeat attitudes. They represent Deerfield very well!

The scores:

1S Katherine Pajak lost 0-6, 3-6

2S Kylie Kittredge won 6-1, 6-4

3S Kate MacKenzie won 7-6 (7-0), 6-1

4S Giorgia Santore lost 6-2, 3-6, (6-11)

1D Ainslie Kell//Nainika Lebaka lost 2-6,1-6

2D Valentina Williamson//Juliet Amadeo won 6-1,6-3

3D Summer Zhou//Lauren Mitchell lost 0-6, 2-6

4D Coco Da Vink//Daly Baker won 6-1, 6-3