Girls’ varsity tennis (12-6 overall, 8-4 Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division) claimed a 6-1 win over Sequoia High School on Tuesday, Oct. 17, despite having to make last-minute lineup modifications because of an injury. After the win, the team also honored their seniors.
But winning was the first priority. Sophomore and No. 4 singles player Samantha Tom injured her wrist during warm ups, and head coach Bill Smith did not want her to have to play an intense game injured, so he paired her with sophomore and No. 3 singles player Evelyn Du to play No. 1 doubles. The pair didn’t disappoint, sweeping their match 6-0, 6-0, and will go on to play doubles together in the PAL tournament. Despite the injury, Tom believed it was her best match of the season.
Junior Natalie Gyde and senior Lily Grenier also won their No. 2 doubles match 6-0, 6-0. It was a bittersweet afternoon for the pair, as they have been doubles partners for three years. Grenier made sure to savor every last minute of their final home game together.
“I wanted to just have fun, and I actually shanked the last few points because I didn’t want to finish the game,” Grenier said.
In place of Du and Tom, juniors Hailey Miller and Lexi Podkaminer moved up to No. 3 and No. 4 singles, respectively. Miller won her match 6-3, 7-5. In her first time playing in a singles match, Podkaminer’s score lost 0-6, 2-6 to her Ravens opponent.
Senior and No. 1 singles player Mila Mulready grabbed an easy 6-1, 6-0 victory over her opponent. While it was not her most challenging match, Mulready said it was good practice to help her maintain focus and give maximum effort.
“It’s a good mental challenge to say, ‘Okay, I’m just going to dial in this entire match and never lose my focus and produce a good score,’” Mila Mulready said. “Just coming to the net more than I normally would, and going big on turns.”
Freshman and No. 2 singles player Shea Mulready also impressed. In a previous match against her Sequoia opponent on Sept. 22, Shea Mulready won her first set 7-5, lost her second set 5-7, and won her tiebreaker 10-8. But on Tuesday, Shea Mulready dominated, obtaining a 6-1, 6-0 win. According to Smith, the younger Mulready has shown great improvement and achievement over the course of the season.
The Panthers went on to play their last match of the season against Woodside High School on Thursday, Oct. 19. Smith is confident that Burlingame will grab a spot in the Central Coast Section (CCS) tournament, where their biggest threat is Menlo-Atherton High School, the reigning CCS champions.
