The Levelland Highschool Tennis Pack fell short in their match against All Saints this past Tuesday, losing 5-14.
While the overall team result was lopsided, Head Coach Jeffrey Braziel highlighted many of the Lobos and Loboettes that were able to shine in the match.
“Nathan Ellis won one line boys singles, 3-2. Lilly Alvarado and Angelina Rivera won three line girls doubles,” Braziel said. “Zachary Lopez and Daniela Perez-Garcia won in mixeddoubles. Daisy Perez won three line girls singles and then Kimberly Campos won six line girls singles.”
These great performances come against a formidable opponent in All Saints, who Braziel acknowledged as an elite program, referencing the fact they’ve won seven straight state titles.
Meaning, although it’s a loss, it’s a great learning experience playing against one of the best tennis programs in the state.
“We just have to learn from the loss. We learned how to compete with better players. They’re going to take it on the chin occasionally and that’s just how it is,” Braziel said. “We can take these losses, figure out what we need to work on and hit the ground running and practice it. These are pre-district matches, those are the ones you want to learn from and get the kinks out while you can.”
While you always want to win, this loss isn’t the end of the world.
This tough matchup against All Saints will prepare Levelland for competition in one of the most competitively intense districts in the state.
Braziel referenced that there is two top 25 ranked teams within their district, not to mention that majority of the remaining 4A top 25 is crowded with schools in West Texas.
The road won’t be easy this season by any means, so even in a loss, getting to play against high level teams early is a great preparation tool for a difficult schedule ahead.
The loss now puts Braziel’s squad with a record of 4-3 on the season, but he’s more than pleased with where his team is at compared to last season.
“We’ve grown leaps and bounds. We have three boys with only one or two losses,” Braziel said. “We are seeing a lot better doubles play on both sides and getting better at things that we were weaker at last year and that’s always huge to see.”
The team isn’t flawless, but improving, and that’s all a coach can ask for.
Like they’ve learned and improved from last season, they’ll do the same with their loss to All Saints, using it to grow better for their upcoming matchups.
They’ll get their chance to do so as they have two more matches within the next four days against Wall and Greenwood.
The Pack will play host to Midland Greenwood this coming Tuesday at 4 p.m.