Armijo opens tennis playoffs with victory
FAIRFIELD — On an extremely windy afternoon, the Armijo High girls tennis team blew away its competition.
The Indians opened the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I playoffs with a blustery 7-2 win Tuesday over visiting Merced. The victory sets up a second-round home match Monday against Lodi, which slipped by Elk Grove 5-4.
After being bounced in the first round of last season’s playoffs, Armijo coach Greg Davis knows that nothing is certain, especially on a windy day.
“It feels awfully good,” Davis said of opening this postseason with a victory. “Winning always feels good, but we did have to work pretty hard today. The conditions were tough for both teams. . . The wind is always an equalizer.”
The Indians took four of the six singles matches and swept all three doubles contests.
Bella Heidenreich was the only Armijo player not to drop a game, defeating Merced’s Charlotte Sofranek 6-0, 6-0. Laya Dasari (7-5. 3-6, 7-6) fell at No. 2 singles, while Alex Castaneda (6-4, 6-1) and Lenora Quionez (6-4, 6-0) won at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.
Mandy Brewer (6-2, 6-1) lost at No. 5, with Mercedes Uson (7-5, 6-2) getting a win at No. 6.
The No. 1 doubles team of Molly Smith and Asatta Russell (6-4, 7-6) needed a second-set tie-break to win their match, with the No. 2 duo of Ariana Restua and Kathleen Bolholst winning easily 6-0, 6-1. The No. 3 doubles team of Denise Martinez and Linh Nguyen posted a 7-5, 7-5 victory.
With it being her last year, Smith, whose match with partner Russell proved to be the clinching win Tuesday, was happy to get a first-round playoff win after being part of the team that lost in last year’s first round.
“It was definitely a good experience for me because it’s my senior year,” Smith said. “It’s a satisfying feeling. (Russell) and I always compliment each other because she is good in the back (of the court) and I’m good in the front.
“When we’re in that position, that’s good for us. When we can get in that position, it always gives us a good opportunity to win.”
Even though Armijo cruised into the second round, Davis knows it only gets tougher as the playoffs progress.
“This was really good for us and we look forward to playing (Lodi),” Davis said. “(Lodi) has a storied program . . . a good tennis reputation.We came out (Tuesday) ready to play. This has been what we’ve been working for all year. We’re in the right place at the right time right now.”
Reach Brian Arnold at 427-6969 or barnold@dailyrepublic.net.
Short URL: http://www.dailyrepublic.com/?p=103243
Posted by Brian Arnold
on Nov 1 2011.
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