Girls varsity tennis fell 2-5 to Redwood for their first loss of the season. Both teams were undefeated prior to the match.
As MCAL tennis reached the midpoint of the season, Branson sits in second place after the loss to rival Redwood.
“[Redwood is] a tough team,” said coach Chrissie Costamagna. “They’re a solid team and they’re a deep team. So it’s a challenge for us. We’ve had a rivalry for as long as I’ve been coaching.”
Branson lost to Redwood in the MCAL finals in 2022.
While Redwood now holds the top spot in MCAL for the first time this season, Costamagna expressed confidence in the future of the team, given the opportunity to play people in the middle of the ladder later on in the season.
Branson’s team suffered a surprise injury to senior and No. 1 player, Anna Rende, before the start of the 2023 season. This has forced others to step up and take her place.
“Everybody has really rallied together to be supportive,” Costamagna said on the fallout of the injury. “And they’ve had to step up another rung on the ladder.”
After their loss against Redwood, Branson sits at 7-1. However, the Bulls will likely face a challenge in the MCAL playoffs against Redwood once again.
“We would likely see them in the playoffs and possibly the finals,” Costamagna said.
Laila Elkhoury ‘24 saw a silver lining to the day despite the loss.
“It was fun to play against Redwood, our toughest opponent, [which] was a nice challenge,” she said. “It was good to push myself.”
Audrey Gilmore ‘25, Branson’s current top singles player, lost her match after resuming play due to darkness, but was positive about the overall play of the team.
“Every time I looked over at our doubles, they were poaching and they were doing really well,” Gilmore said. “And I think Talia and Xandra did particularly well as they were our only win [against Redwood].”
Fans showed out in support of the Bulls in light of the crucial match with playoff implications.
“We really appreciated the support that we got today. Girls tennis doesn’t really get that many fans,” Gilmore said.
