Going into their match against Burbank High School (BHS), the Boys JV Tennis team felt well-prepared and confident for the challenge. The match, played away from home, placed the players in an unfamiliar court; at BHS, the tennis courts were located on the third floor of the school’s parking lot, a strange place for a sports match. Nevertheless, the Apaches adapted well to their environment, finishing their match with the score of 15-3.
On the rooftop, the boys faced strong winds, which blew the ball around and made it difficult to play well. However, despite the adverse conditions, the team was in high spirits and ready to take on the challenge.
“There were no second thoughts of backing down,” said sophomore Canyon Bei. “Since there was heavy wind that day, we all had to adjust our play style, but everything went well, and we took home another win.”
From the basic groundstrokes to volleys and slices, tennis requires a lot more than just athleticism. Many players, like sophomore William Zhang, find that the hardest parts of tennis stem from physical and mental weaknesses.
“Keeping focus during long rallies and maintaining a positive mindset, especially after making mistakes, are areas I find tough,” said Zhang. “Also, mastering the serve has been a bit of a struggle—it’s such a crucial part of the game, and getting it right consistently takes a lot of practice.”
Despite the obstacles Zhang faced in his game play, he and his doubles partner, sophomore Brian Chen, won all three of their matches with set scores of 6-2, 6-1, and 6-0. As Doubles 1 of the Boys JV Team, the two players demonstrated the incredible teamwork and chemistry required to play a good doubles match.
“Overall, I feel like I’ve improved a lot, but there’s always room for growth,” said Zhang. “I’d like to work on my backhand and improve my serve accuracy. Mentally, I want to become resilient and learn how to better handle the pressure in critical points of a match.”
The positive growth mindset of the JV players is a key quality that makes the team so successful. With many more matches to go, the Apaches still have a long way to go in their season. However, with daily practices and conditioning, the team is sure to make improvements day by day.
For sophomore Randy Wu, “consistency was the most difficult thing about [the Burbank match] because [the BHS players] were very consistent,” and he hopes to work on “being more strategic.”
As a doubles player, Wu’s play style is based around strategic ball placement rather than simple rallying. While consistency is important, doubles is a much more fast-paced game than singles, and strategizing allows the player to win the point faster and prevent the other team from capitalizing on their weak shots or mistakes.
The Boys JV Tennis team played well against BHS, and each match demonstrates how much they’ve improved over the season.
Photo courtesy of Arcadia DCI intern Eisen Chang
