The California Lutheran University Regals tennis team won their match against the No. 41 ranked Occidental College Tigers 5-4, on Tuesday April 2.
โHonestly, our energy was great. I think today was awesome. Just everybody was cheering each other on,โ junior Luisa Garcia said.
According to CLUSports.com, the last time the Regals and the Tigers faced each other on April 7, the Tigers snapped the Regalsโ 12-game winning streak against Occidental from the 2010-2011 season to the 2021-2022 season.
โI definitely think the energy and motivation of everyone was what made us successful, everyone had passion on the court and kept fighting no matter where they were in the match whether they were winning or losing, and I think thatโs what made us win overall,โ senior Lauren Sebastian said.
Juniors Mina Ahmadi and Carmen Bufkin won 8-4 during the first doubles match.
โWeโre always cheering each other on no matter where you are on court or off court, we always cheer, we always tend to move around so everyone feels supported,โ L. Garcia said.ย
First-years Maddy Ford and Kylee Limpias won the second doubles match 8-5.
โI think it is very important for our team to have friendships with each other, it helps us to just motivate each other on the court when weโre playing matches and it overall helps us to create a stronger team bond,โ Sebastian said.
Finally, first-year Anya Rajan and junior Fatima Nemi Revilla dropped the third doubles match to the Tigers 5-8. The Regals led 2-1 after the doubles round.
โIn doubles the teams did really well at communicating to each other, what they’re going to do, how they’re going to do it, what to do when,โ Assistant Coach Jonathan Garcia said.
During singles, junior Kayla Kling won 6-3 and 6-4. Limpias won 6-2 during the sixth match. Ford and Nemi Revilla lost their singles match but the Regals still led 4-3.
โItโs just so easy to support each other when you’re close already because weโre good friends off court as well, so itโs just very easy to support one another, and then we also just laugh and joke around and have fun with it,โ L. Garcia said.
Bufkin dominated the first set 6-0, and the second 7-5. Luisa Garcia was outlasted at match number 2. But the Regals still won the dual and the game overall.
โI think the most important thing in my opinion is to have fun, and I think if we just continue to try to have fun everything will be good for us,โ L. Garcia said.
L. Garcia said ย the team supports each other on the court, and also off the court, which creates a beneficial team bond.
โI think that it was really great we had the Kingsmen come out for a little while and they were supporting the Regals, so I know that definitely helped out quite a bit,โ J. Garcia said.ย
J. Garcia said the team also has friendships that help them better support each other on and off the court, and even when teammates arenโt playing they still support the rest of the team.
โFor the teammates that werenโt playing on this particular day, they did a really good job of supporting the rest of the team,โ J. Garcia said.
He said the team has created a special bond this year and has created great resources for one another, which is reflected in their performance during games.ย
โIt’s very easy for us to go on the group chat or just text each other, and be a good resource and have your teammates as a resource,โ L. Garcia said.ย
The Regals currently have an overall record of 8-4, and are 1-1 in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Sebastian expressed her pride in her teamโs hard work and team collaboration so far this season.
โIโm very proud of the team and how far weโve come this season, weโve been through our ups and downs and everything but we got through them, and just got closer as a team, and just became a family,โ Sebastian said.
The Regals won 9-0 in their recent match against Whittier College on Saturday, April 6.
