Hoping to improve on their 2-0 record, the girls tennis team looks to build momentum and take advantage of their skills and confidence as they head into the rest of their season.

With their match against Lake Braddock cancelled due to rain, the Atoms expected to be tested in their match against Woodson on March 28, which ended too late to be covered in this issue.

“There are a lot of great tennis teams out there, especially Woodson, Lake Braddock, and T.C. Williams,” sophomore Jenny Ha said before the match. Woodson’s record going in was 3-0, and the team is historically a strong competitor in the Patriot District. Hopes were high from players about the match, though.

“It is always hard to say how the next game will work out but I think we have good chances to win this match,” junior Caddi Schuessler said before the face-off against Woodson.

This year has been one of transition for the team, as several of their top players graduated last year. The new coach of the team, Dean of Students Hassan Mims, has also been able to bring his leadership and experience to the program.

“Each week the girls continue to improve and it looks like we will have a winning season,” Mims said.

“I think with our new coach and hard work, we’ll be able to show those schools how much better we’ve gotten,” Ha said. The hard work has come from a determination to succeed in the district and as a result of confidence from previous matches. Including scrimmages, the team’s record before the Woodson match was 3-1, as they lost to Marshall in their first scrimmage. They swept Lee 9-0 in their first match, and narrowly beat West Potomac 5-4 in their second.

“We pulled through on our matches against West Potomac, but we could have done better in terms of being consistent with our shots,” junior Bonne Clark said. Ha, who along with Clark is one of the team’s top six competitors, agreed.

“I think that our team has done pretty well so far because last year we lost to West Potomac and this year we beat them after losing a lot of seniors,” Ha said.

While the team has seen success recently, there is always room for improvement.

“Our team is pretty good about understanding to keep the ball in play but I really think we could improve on our ‘killer instincts’,” Clark said. “That’s what really gets you into the game instead of thinking about how much you want to just end the game. It’s what makes matches fun.”

The team looks to do their best and move forward with the remainder of the season on a positive note.

“The team can do a good job this season; we have really good players who do a great job,” Schuessler said.