LINWOOD – The Mainland Regional High School girls tennis team is aiming high. There is no reason not to.
Last season, the team went undefeated and won a sectional championship. This season the Mustangs return six of the seven starters, although one is out of action due to an injury.
Still, that leaves five veterans ready to rumble through the competition.
They opened Monday with a 5-0 victory over Millville, giving up only nine games across five matches.
“This is one of our smallest teams but also one of our strongest,” said returning first singles Khushi Thakkar. “We were undefeated last year and won the sectional championship so our aspirations are definitely high. We’re hoping to go undefeated and (also) win CALs. That would be great.”
Coach Kathy Yohe and Thakkar said the team wants to find itself in the South Jersey sectional finals again, likely against perennial power Moorestown. And maybe go on from there? “That would be awesome,” Yohe said. “That would be amazing,” Thakkar said.
Both believe the Mustang girls tennis program has a good chance of making a strong run through the season and the tournament.
“We’ve all been playing tennis for a while,” Thakkar said. “Most of us have been playing since freshman year so we have a great bond and I think we’re going to do great this year. We all want to work hard, we’re all ambitious, we are definitely aiming high.”
“We have a lot of seniors and some young really good players,” Yohe said. “We’re missing Charlotte Walcoff, our second singles. She’s out injured.” (She hobbled onto the court in a medical boot for the team photo.)
After Thakkar, senior Hannah Carson is at second singles and freshman Christina Htay is at third singles. First doubles are sophomores Maddie Dennis and Samantha Goldberg.
Second doubles to start the season are Anna Geubtner and Elizabeth Ong, a sophomore. Others who could make it onto the court at second doubles are Emma Savov, Lexi Jacob and Saanvi Mehta.
“We’re still a work in progress,” Yohe said.
The new players on varsity are Htay at third singles and Goldberg at first doubles.
“I think we’re deep and they’re all playing well. They’re all very hard workers. We’re looking to have a really good season. That’s the goal,” Yohe said.
She added the team has “great leaders.” Captains are Thakkar, Carson and Walcoff. “They’re really good leaders. They’re really nice girls, they’re really positive, they get everybody going all the time. They lead by example and do a really nice job,” the coach said.
Everyone, especially the seniors, “really want to go out and do well this year,” Yohe said. She acknowledged that is something her teams always strive for.
Last season the girls won the Southeast Regional section, which was a combination of Group III and IV schools in the region, a change made because of the pandemic to limit travel.
The girls beat Egg Harbor Township in the finals, but that is where the season ended. There was no state tournament.
This year it will be back to the regulation sectional tournament.
She and the girls are happy this is a return to a normal season with the South Jersey tournament and the Cape-Atlantic League tournament and, if all goes well, perhaps the state tournament as well.
“We’re hoping it stays this way,” Yohe said. “So far it’s felt much more normal. We started later last year, then we had the break. It was crazy. So far this has been normal and they’ve been enjoying it.”
Mainland 5, Millville 0
First singles, Thakkar (Mainland) defeated Emily Bishop, 6-2, 6-2
Second singles, Carson (Mainland) defeated Arielis Martinez, 6-2, 6-1
Third singles, Htay (Mainland) defeated Cheyanna Snyder, 6-1, 6-0
First doubles: Dennis, Goldberg (Mainland) defeated LaTonya Johnson and Kassidy McLoone, 6-1, 6-0
Second doubles: Geubtner, Ong (Mainland) defeated Chloe Martinez, Sarah Armington, 6-0, 6-0.
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff