The Girls’ Varsity Tennis team ended their 2023 season with a 9-3 record. They progressed into the playoffs but lost in the second round to Beacon High School.
THHS math teacher, Stephen Mazza, both the Boys and Girls tennis coach, said that the team had a strong season this year. “We went from the fifth-best team in Queens to the second best. We won our first playoff game, something that hasn’t happened since 2019 or earlier. No one on the team had won a playoff game, and now they all have,” he said.
Throughout the season, the team believes their strength was the positivity everyone brought forward. Freshman Tiffany Huang said, “the positivity from all of our teammates and support from everyone, even though tennis is played individually, was our strength.” Similarly, junior Ana Montán said, “Due to everyone being so close, the dynamic this year was very good, allowing us to come back from our losses even stronger.”
Junior Emily Daza said, “The more comfortable my doubles partner, Aleah, and I got with each other’s playing styles, the better our performance got, which resulted in many wins.”
Coach Mazza said his favorite moments were watching the team give their all in challenging matches. He said, “Watching them dig deep, keep fighting, and give their all was always a joy to watch as they played.” However, many of the athletes said that their favorite moment was the ride home from their game against Beacon High School. Freshman Morgan Ma said, “Our van ride home from that match, and giving the seniors their posters at our last home game was my favorite memory.”
“We were having a lot of fun singing and joking around in the van when we were in Manhattan,” freshman Aleah Tercero said.
Senior Tiffany Agbonwaneten said, “Dr. Mazza is super supportive. He made sure everyone felt seen and appreciated. He’s also super funny, which definitely helps to calm the nerves.”
He made sure that the team was prepared before their games by “adding an extra practice in a week if we feel it is necessary,… and [giving] us motivational words during matches,” said captain Victoria Borg.
