The Fullerton College women’s tennis team wrapped up their second consecutive Orange Empire Conference championship, Thursday, against Orange Coast College, with a 7-2 victory.
The Lady Hornets dropped one match in both the singles and doubles catergories. They went 5-1 in singles and 2-1 in doubles.
The top pairing of Sarah Anderson and Sarah Edwards once again did not dissapoint. Both of them won their singles matches, and they won their doubles match. They head into the state playoffs as one of the favorites to take home the doubles title.
“I think this year’s doubles pairing is at least good as last year’s,” said head coach Scott Giles. “And, last year’s team went all the way and won it all. They are a great team in all aspects.”
Last season, Anderson took home the state doubles title with former partner Victoria Vo. She also came in second in the singles tournament.
She will be tested early on in the playoffs in the singles tournament. Fullerton was taking on El Camino in the Southern California regionals at the time of production. Anderson dropped a singles match to El Camino’s Panitnart Sgolsutyatorn earlier on in the season.
“That was a tough match for her,” Giles said. “It will be good for her to get a chance to avenge that loss. I think if she goes out there and plays her game that she will definitely have a solid chance to pick up the win.
Anderson won her singles match with ease (6-0, 6-1), while Edwards did have to work a little bit harder (6-2, 2-6, 6-4). They won the doubles match 8-5.
“They both played well,” Giles said. “But the thing with tennis is that is truly is a team sport. A win by your number six player is worth the exact same as a qin by your number one. It is huge to be able to compete at any spot.”
Jasmine Catolico also won both of her matches on the day. She beat OCC’s Nadine Baquiran (6-4, 6-0) in singles competition. She also teamed up with Allison Enomoto to take down Sydney Farzadkish and Ann Pham (8-5).
“The thing that sets this team apart is our depth,” Giles said. “Some of the teams that we have played against, Jasmine would be their number one player. She is our number four.”
Farzadkish picked up the only victory in singles for OCC with a sweep (6-2, 6-2) over FC’s Brenda Gollaz. Gollaz did not take part in a doubles match.
Pending the result of Tuesday’s match, there will be a match next Tuesday for the semi-finals. The championship is next Saturday. Then, after that all that is left is the state finals in Ojai.
