With the team’s size nearly cut in half from last season, the Cinnaminson High School girls’ tennis team finished the fall season with a record of 10-8, securing fourth in their division and fifth overall in the BCSL.
This year the tennis team consisted of 22 girls compared to the 37 girls they had last season. Nine of the team’s players are seniors and six play on the varsity team.
“This year there is about half the size of girls, so it has been extremely beneficial for team bonding,” senior captain Sadie Bertholf said.
Head Coach Jennifer Alvarado has expressed a need for rebuilding over the coming year due to the loss of a large number of the team’s varsity girls.
“We’re losing nine seniors this year, six seniors are on varsity, so I have one varsity player who is a sophomore,” Alvarado said. “Other than that my entire team is going to be rebuilt, so next year is going to be rebuilding, and figuring out who is going to play what.”
As a first-year player, senior Grace Gonzalez has been extremely helpful to the girls’ tennis team this season. Gonzalez and her doubles partner, Sadie Bertholf, won 14 out of 18 matches this season to secure a first-team spot in the BCSL and an All-South Jersey title.
“I really appreciated playing second doubles with Sadie. She has a lot more experience and is incredible on the courts, so I was grateful to play side by side with her,” Gonzalez said about playing with Bertholf.
Assistant coach Julie Leetz knows that it takes time for players to feel comfortable on the court.
“I wish that I could sprinkle more confidence over them right away, as opposed to them gaining their confidence mid-season and have it for the end of the season,” Leetz said.
New teams coming into the division were challenging, specifically for first doubles and seniors Carlie Marinelli and Eva Quinn. They finished their season with a record of 9-8, compared to their 2-0 record last year on varsity. The girls had suffered tough losses to Delran, Moorestown Friends, and Northern Burlington.
“We were a little surprised with some other schools moving into our division, so that was a surprise that added a bit of a challenge,” Leetz said. “But when it came down to the BCSL Tournament our girls showed that just because those teams were in that new division with us, our girls were still able to adapt and overcome. They overall did really well.”
As Marinelli and Quinn prepare to graduate, they reflect on their years of playing tennis.
“Even though we are a team, we are also like a family, so I’ll miss that, especially about playing tennis,” Quinn said.
Marinelli echoed Quinn’s feelings. “I am going to seriously miss all the girls,” Marinelli said.
The team ended their season with a big 5-0 victory at Willingboro.
