Warrior tennis starts strong in league play

Fallbrook High School’s girls tennis team posted a 3-2 record in pre-league matches. It took the Warriors just three conference matches to match that three-win total in Avocado League play.

“We’re getting a good taste for winning,” said Fallbrook coach Dave Ramirez. “We’re improving in every match, so hopefully we can keep consistent.”

A schedule conflict cancelled a pre-league match at La Costa Canyon, but the Warriors defeated Escondido and Mount Carmel in pre-league matches to even their record at 2-2 before a September 21 win over Poway, which was among the top five teams in the CIF San Diego Section. “That was a really big one for us,” Ramirez said.

The two losses were to Rancho Bernardo and Torrey Pines. The Torrey Pines match, which was played at the Falcons’ home court, was a 12-6 loss, and winning six sets against the Falcons is also considered a significant accomplishment.

“We’re hanging in there,” Ramirez said.

Fallbrook opened league competition September 26 at El Camino and took a 14-4 victory over the Wildcats. “We did great,” Ramirez said. “We did pretty well against them.”

The Warriors then hosted Carlsbad September 28 and earned a 15-3 victory. “We’re doing pretty well,” Ramirez said.

Fallbrook traveled to Rancho Buena Vista for an October 3 league match and came away with another 15-3 victory.

High school tennis matches feature three singles players on each team, each of whom plays the three singles players on the other team, and three doubles teams who face their opponents’ three doubles tandems. Each of the 18 sets counts as one point for the winner.

If a team has clinched a match prior to the start of the third round of play (meaning one team has won ten of the first 12 sets), both the winning team and the losing team are allowed to insert substitutes. That is not an option with Fallbrook. “I decided this year the discrepancy between our varsity players and our JV players is too great,” Ramirez said. “I’m running the show with nine girls.”

Two of those nine varsity team members, #3 singles player Brittany Doehring and #3 doubles member Michaela Johnson, are freshmen. “They’re doing great,” Ramirez said.

Sophomore Roxanne Parker is Fallbrook’s #1 singles player. Senior Jennifer Doehring is the #2 singles player.

Senior Mallory Wedeking and junior Angela Maddock comprise Fallbrook’s #1 doubles team. Juniors Spencer Spagnuola and Ashley Dirrigo are the Warriors’ #2 doubles squad, and Johnson joins senior Maggie Dietering on the #3 doubles team.

Tawyna Dietering has moved up from the junior varsity coach to an assistant on the varsity. “She’s doing all kinds of really neat things for the girls,” Ramirez said.

Jay Craven took Dietering’s place as the JV coach.

“If they focus, they do well,” Ramirez said of his squad.

“This year I think I’ve pushed them a lot harder than I have in the past, and they responded,” Ramirez said. “Now it’s maturing into something really, really neat.”