The Gryphon Gazette

By Amaanya G. ‘28

As the 2024 fall season is coming to an end, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the girl’s tennis team’s past matches. As a freshman on the team, I found it to be a friendly and enjoyable environment for playing and learning tennis. The sport itself is so fun, but the people are what truly makes the team. Despite the varying skill levels, everyone was welcome and had the opportunity to play and practice.

The first match was an away match at Branham in San Jose. The team lost 2-5 but had great wins at Singles 1 with Ariella C. ‘25 and Doubles 1 Lauren C. 25’ and Reina K. 26’. 

The second match was another away match, at Hillsdale. At school, the team dressed up with the theme as Ski Day. We stayed true to our theme, “icing out” Hillsdale 11-0. This match was unusual, as typically, only our top 10 would play in 7 matches, but we had a special opportunity for 4 more exhibition matches, giving everyone a chance to play.

The team’s third match, against Nueva, was also our home opener. Despite the heat, our girls came out on top once again, winning 6-1. During our theme at school, we dressed up as minions, with the seniors as Gru. 

The fourth match of the season was wild, like the theme of the day, Wild West. The girls played University SF. They drove almost 45 minutes in the crazy San Francisco rush hour traffic and played in blistering heat. Unfortunately, they lost 1-6, despite their tough fighting. 

The fifth match was at home against Harker for their first league match. The team came out to show their support by dressing up for the beach, which complemented the hot weather that the team had to play in. Unfortunately, Harker was a bit better suited against the heat, and the team lost 0-7.

With a back-to-back home match, the team dressed up in patriotic colors to go up against Menlo. Unluckily, the second league match was another loss, once again 0-7.

The team came back with a fighting spirit against Castilleja for their third league game. The team dressed up as different ages by grade level: freshmen as babies, sophomores as teenagers, juniors as middle-aged adults, and seniors as… seniors. Even the grandmas on our team were able to make a win, beating Casti 4-3.

With another home match, the team dressed up as frat boys, but sadly, the frat boy spirit didn’t help us against Sacred Heart Prep, as we lost 0-7.

For the most recent match against Notre Dame Belmont, we came back with a vengeance, dressed up in all gray at school, but shining during the match and winning 7-0 on their home turf. We also had one exhibition match, which we also won.

The last five matches of the season consisted of one more win against Notre Dame again. This was a great season, considering how many new players we have. We ended league with a score of 3-7 in league, which is 4th place. We played as one of the top 3 teams in CCS. Our Senior Night went off without a hitch, with an exceptional song and dance performance by the other players. 

Being on the team is such a great experience and with each practice and match it is so nice to see our teams come out full of positive energy and encouragement. I’ll miss the amazing spirit and energy that the team brings each practice. Each person is so supportive and encouraging no matter what happens in the match. Until next year! Go Gryphons!