The boys tennis team conquered the San Mateo Bearcats on Tuesday afternoon, pulling out a 5-2 victory. The Bears simultaneously displayed their strength, power, and endurance despite temperatures reaching 90 degrees.
The doubles had sweeping success, not losing a single set to the Bearcats to emerge victorious in all three matches. However, the singles players faced difficult matches across all courts, with the Bearcats matching the Bears’ intensity throughout the game as M-A scraped two wins out of the four solo matches.
The doubles three match was the first to conclude, with seniors Connor Bae and Raphael Pierres emerging victorious. Through communication and strategic positioning, the duo showcased their dominance, finishing with scores of 6-2 and 6-0.
Next off was the singles one matchup, where junior Cole Aylaian was defeated by his opponent in a heartbreaking loss. Aylaian delivered mean receiving swings, but with his opponent returning each ball savagely. Ultimately, he came up short, losing 6-1 and 6-3.
“[I needed] more fighting mentality,” Aylaian said. “My ground strokes were okay. I had some pretty good shots from the back [but] I feel defeated this season.”
Junior Thomas Greenleaf and freshman Rafa Kroes had no trouble in doubles one, remaining ice-cold despite scorching temperatures. Well-placed hits gave way to a speedy set with M-A delivering a commanding win, 6-1. Despite service errors from both teams, consistent returns from the Bears allowed them to pull out a narrow 7-5 victory.
“They didn’t really get any of their serves in. They missed a lot of points,” Greenleaf said. “It was hot, so that’s bad for everyone.”
Spirits kept soaring after freshman Isaac Chang absolutely mauled his opponent in the singles four with a double bagel victory of 6-0 in the first set and 6-0 in the second. This dominance was seen beyond the scorebook with bullet hits and overall hustle on Chang’s side, exhibiting the strength and depth of the Bears’ team.
However, two courts down, senior Cubby Derrough ran out of the St. Patrick’s Day luck, succumbing to his San Mateo rival in a loss of 6-1 and 7-5. Regardless, Derrough, the serving machine, cranked out monster service after monster service. Unfortunately, his strength proved to be his weakness in this match as Derrough lost crucial points with the ball falling just out of bounds.
“Since it is such a hot day, my feet were pretty slow, but by the second set, I just felt better,” Derrough said. “My serve was on today, but overall my ground strokes weren’t doing too hot.”
Swinging the momentum back to the Bears, doubles two team of sophomores Yoonwon Bae and Max Weiss breezed to victory in their match. Weiss led the way with formidable serves, and the duo delivered smooth strokes to take the first set, 6-4. Continuing this pattern, the Bears continued to exemplify their dominance, coming out on top in the second set, 6-3.
In what might have been the most exciting match of this game, singles three player junior Liam Baker took his opponent to three sets, robbing San Mateo of celebration and snatching the win. Baker’s powerful backhand propelled him through the first set, winning 6-1. Unfortunately, as the sun continued to beat down on both players, Baker narrowly lost the lead and, in turn, the second set, 7-6. In the third and final tie-breaking set, Baker prevailed in a 10-8 win, surrounded by claps and cheers from his entire team.
The Bears will return to their home court to battle the Carlmont Scots at 4 p.m on Thursday.
