Girls’ tennis brings momentum into CIF playoffs
Samo girls’ tennis continues another successful season. They started off the season with high expectations after winning Ocean League and advancing to the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) last year. Now with a strong team and some promising new faces, the Samo girls’ tennis team is living up to their expectations.
Currently, Samo girls’ tennis has a record of 11-2, and are the undefeated Ocean League champions, with their last win being against Inglewood High School 17-1. An amazing win to celebrate on Senior Appreciation Day. Head coach Shaun Simone laid out one of their strengths this season
“We are doing really well, better than last year. [..] Doubles is much stronger this year; those six girls are playing really well together. The chemistry and the energy remain high, which is always a delight to see this far into the season.” Simone said.
In their match against Geffen Academy - one of Samo’s biggest competitors - their doubles teams didn’t lose a single match-up, with second doubles winning 6-0 in every round. In their match against Inglewood High School, Samo’s first and second doubles won each of their matches 6-0. Varsity captain Rebecca Sholze (’26) talked about their team, comparing this season with their previous season.
“We have done a good job of splitting across more people the skill level we have on our team. Last year, it was really one person focused, and this year we have a lot more equal amount of talent.” Scholze said.
John Woods/Contributor
Girls varsity tennis celebrating their undefeated Ocean League season
Not only are the doubles strong this year, but Samo’s singles are also doing very well in their matches. Varsity captain Stella Callen (’26) shares her experience of the season and praises the team.
“The first half of our season was really successful this year. We faced some hard competitors and came away with either a victory or having learned something new,” Callen said. “We have a really strong team this year, I’m really proud of, especially our singles player Ava Brara (’27), who has been on varsity every year she has been here, and of our new freshman, and just of the entire team in general, everyone is doing great.”
In their most recent game against Mira Costa High School, one of their toughest opponents, Brara won all three of her matches.
Samo’s team is hard at work winning matches, improving their warmups, and advancing towards league finals and CIFs. With strong players in both singles and doubles and with victories in key matches this year, the team is hopeful about their chances in CIFs. With such an amazing start to the season, the second half is looking very promising for girls’ tennis.