Tennis team loses in rain, then bounces back to beat Mt. Carmel
By Bill Tamburrino
The Bulldog tennis team went on the road in the rain and lost to Westview High School and then beat Mt. Carmel High School to improve to 9-3 overall and 2-3 in the Palomar League.
Westview (11-1, 3-1) is a strong contender of the league and CIF title along with Torrey Pines and Rancho Bernardo.
“Coming off of spring break made it tougher and Westview is tough any time you play them,” said Coach Doug Failla. “I was very proud of the way the team dug deep and bounced back to beat Mt. Carmel. This team has a lot of character. We have a winning record and we play one of the toughest schedules in the CIF. A win this week over Poway would be big.”
Failla used 10 players in the victory over Mt. Carmel in his effort to give players as much experience as possible.
Number one singles player, Daniel Streeter, won two sets with scores of 6-2 and 6-0 before Joey Guzzino came in and went 0-6. Christian Failla went 6-2 and then won a tie-breaker to post a 7-6 score.
Adam Mazzola then lost a heartbreaker 6-7. Scotty Barber won three sets with scores of 6-2, 6-4, and 6-0.
In doubles action, John Shupe and Tyler McDonald got stronger as the match progressed. They opened with a 7-6 tie-breaker and then went 6-2 and got back to their tradition of bagels with a 6-0.
Chad Martin and Nick Peterson posted scores of 1-6, 7-6, and 6-0. Garrett Wilcox and Ricky Flores went 6-0 and 6-4 before Wilcox teamed up with Jack Melleker to post a 4-6.
Barber picked up Ramona’s only team point against Westview High School as he beat Alvin Ho 6-4. Streeter went 1-6. Mazzola carded scores of 0-6 and 0-6. Failla went 0-6 and 0-6, and Guzzino also went 0-6.
Shupe and McDonald went 2-6, 2-6, and 4-6. Martin and Peterson posted scores of 1-6, 0-6, and 5-7. Wilcox and Flores went 1-6, 3-6, and 3-6.
The Dawgs lost a match to Mother Nature as their home match scheduled against Rancho Buena Vista was a rainout. It is too late in the season to re-schedule a non-league match.
The win over Mt. Carmel guarantees the Bulldogs a winning season against the best competition in the CIF.