Gilroy defeats Alisal 5-2 in TCAL
Gilroy – Gilroy High coach Randy Barbaglia needed to play a little mix-and-match with his doubles players Wednesday.
With Holly Hunter and Natalie Toews sidelined by illness, Barbaglia shuffled the deck. The cards came up aces as the surging Mustangs swept the doubles matches and extended their win streak to four Wednesday by defeating Alisal 5-2 in a Tri-County Athletic League encounter.
GHS is now 5-6 overall, 5-5 in TCAL.
Karissa Tellez continued her crisp doubles play by teaming with Kim Johnson for the first time in a 6-4, 6-1 win over Brandy Saldana. With each match, her confidence seems to be growing.
“We worked well together as a team,” Tellez said. “It was nice we can all win together. I feel I have definitely improved over the last couple of months.”
That has also been true of the Castro sisters, newcomers to the sport. Emily and Alissa Castro have made their marks on softball fields. They are quickly catching on in tennis, despite taking up the sport just this past summer as a family activity. Their competitiveness has been a huge asset as they try and learn the nuances of the sport.
Emily Castro won her fourth straight match, edging Alesia Clemente 7-5, 7-5. It was the second close match they had this season with Castro winning a tiebreaker the first time. As has been her style, Castro rallied at the end.
“I’m a two-strike hitter,” Castro said, using a softball analogy. “Once I get down, I get mad at myself and say I have to do it now.”
Younger sister Alissa Castro was reunited with Anneliese Zelina, her partner at the beginning of the season. They eased past Nicole Saldana and Gen Ureta 6-2, 6-3.
Meanwhile, Sidney Ebert and Monica Liu, playing their first match together, were at their best in tiebreakers as they slipped past Sandra Topia and Nancy Tiznado 6-7, 6-2, 10-4.
GHS No. 1 singles player Amy Huang won the last three games of the second set and topped Brenda Luquin 6-1, 6-4. It was Huang’s fourth win of the season.
Alisal (2-8) got wins at Nos. 3 and 4 singles as Anabel Quintero defeated Gories Kwong 6-2, 6-1, and Cindy Leong came from behind to beat Cherilyn Christian 2-6, 6-4, 10-5.
