COD Women’s & Men’s Tennis win PCAC individual and team titles

COD Women's Tennis and Men's Tennis swept the individual and doubles Conference titles and the Men's team was presented with their Conference Championship trophy. 

On the Women's side, the reigning Pacific Coast Athletic Conference (PCAC) Outstanding Player of the Year recipient, freshman Claudia Stepien (Palm Desert H.S.) won the singles title by winning her first set with ease, 6-2 and then had to fight back a solid challenge in the second set, falling 4-6. Then Stepien demolished her opponent in the third and deciding set, 6-2.

Prior to the Conference Finals, Stepien had never been paired with her doubles partner, freshman Ana Laura Ochoa-Castillo (Albuquerque (NM) Atrisco Heritage Academy), but after a very rough start, opening down, 4-0, the team of Ochoa-Castillo and Stepien rebounded to win the first set 7-5 and then rolled in the second set, 6-3 to take the PCAC Doubles Championship.

On the Men's side, it was a true "battle of attrition," as all players had to play three matches a day for the entirety of the tournament, culminating in getting all six players qualified for the CCCAA State Championship in Ojai. Freshman Kyryll Kryvchun (Vancouver (BC) Learning Network) was awarded the Conference Athlete of the Year award.

Freshman Kyryll Kryvchun (Vancouver (BC) Learning Network), freshman Brian Johnson (Palm Springs H.S.), sophomore Dimitrije Vukovic (Burnaby (BC) Moscrop Secondary), sophomore Jakob Dvorken (Ridgewood, NJ) and sophomore Joau Luiz Zillo Prado (São Paulo (Brazil) Ateneu) all qualified for the State Championship in both doubles and singles play. Freshman Joshua Bailin (La Quinta H.S.) qualified for doubles.

Women's Photos by Todd Conger & Men's Photos by Joshua Bailin

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For additional information, please contact the COD Sports Information Office at 760.423.6641.