“It’s our 100% team this year,” junior third year returning
varsity player Dylan Tong said.
With all of last year’s varsity members back on the team and
several strong new additions, expectations for the boys’ varsity tennis team
are higher than last year. “There is a lot of new talent this year,” Tong said.
“The potential is much higher because they have a lot more experience before
coming to Lowell.” Sophomore second year returning varsity player, Kameron
Chang agreed with Tong. “There are some pretty good freshmen this year, leading
to a stronger team overall,” he said.
Highly optimistic, the Cardinals kicked off their preseason
with a good record. They successfully defeated Archbishop Riordan High School
with a score of 7-0 on Feb. 10. They also managed to beat Sacred Heart
Cathedral Prepatory by a close score of 4-3 two days later.
This year, the team is expecting to go to the city finals. “A
team is measured by how hard its players work and how much respect they have
for each other,” senior captain Frank Lu said. “So far, we’ve got both going
for our team this season.”
The team is determined to make it farther than city
semi-finals this year. According to Lu, a crucial factor to their lost at
semi-finals last year against Balboa was their sudden change in their line-ups.
As a result, many of their crucial players did not get a chance to play, and
many others were unprepared for their matches. “It was an embarrassment last
year,” Lu said. “We should have won.”
Despite last year’s lost to Balboa in the semi-finals, the
boys are coming back this year with the attitude of winners. “I have high
confidence in our new team,” Chang said. “I believe that we will definitely go
further than last year.”
Boosted with newfound confidence, many of the team members
have high hopes to get far at NorCals this year and are willing to work hard to
get there. According to Chang, the team needs to work on their organization and
communication. “(I hope) this year everyone knows what’s happening, where and
when so that (we) can get the whole team out to practice more,” Chang said.
Come support the boys’ tennis team at 3:30 pm on Feb. 25 at
Lowell against Tamalpais.
