The heat was blazing, sweat was dripping, and the pressure was on for senior captain Bianca Vesuna to get a much-needed singles win for Westfield. After a tough start to the season, Vesuna now needed a confidence boost more than ever before. The match was short and sweet, with Vesuna winning both sets.
On Thursday, September 19, Westfield faced off against the 10-1 Millburn Millers. “[Milburn] has great doubles and great servers,” senior Gisella Rittenhouse said. “It was a great opportunity to play against them and learn from such a talented team.”
Although they weren’t favored, they still put up a great performance against the highly-ranked Millers. Seniors and second doubles partners Natalie Debowski and Julissa Mijaleski were pleased with their playing. “[We] hit some strong shots that we were capable of,” said captain Debowski. “We were blasting it strategically. Our points and shots were much stronger than usual.”
“I’m very happy with our quality of shots,” Mijaleski added. “It’s just a little bit of making the same mistake over and over again.” Both girls put up a good fight, but ended up losing both sets.
Third singles player and senior Anna Luchsinger had a long and strenuous match. It went back and forth for two and a half hours after splitting sets. “It took a lot of effort,”
Luchsinger said. “A lot of my points were long, and I definitely need to work on my shots.” With the support of all her teammates, Luchsinger was able to drag the match out to the final deciding points.
Vesuna was the only Blue Devil to come out with a win. “I have played [my opponent] in a tournament before, so I was just trying to focus on what I knew going in,” Vesuna said. “She is a really good player, so I just wanted to play my best, because anything can happen.” Earlier this season, Vesuna committed to Bryn Mawr College. With high expectations, she has had a tough couple of matches ending in losses. This win was just the boost she needed to push her forward for the rest of the season.
Westfield will face off against Scotch Plains-Fanwood on Monday, at Le Grande Avenue Tennis Courts. They are looking forward to an exciting match against their school rivals.
