Sedona Red Rock High School’s girls tennis team knew that its state quarterfinal match against Veritas Prep on Tuesday, May 4 would be the final home match of the season. The question for the Scorpions was, would they advance to the semifinals, played in Glendale, or would the season end? Unfortunately for the Sedona team, it was the latter.
The first four matches of the day were all won by the Falcons. On the court were two singles matches and one doubles match. If Veritas won any of those, the other two matches would be halted and the two remaining doubles matches that were yet to start would be called off. When Falcons junior Parker Cashdan defeated Scorpions sophomore Rina Sato 6-7, 6-4, 6-2, Veritas clinched its 5-0 victory.
“I think we were all just kind of nervous and I wasn’t playing my best game — I know I could have played better,” said Jillian Grondin, SRRHS’ No. 3 singles player and half of the No. 1 doubles team with Sato. “But I think the season I had was pretty good — so I’m not disappointed.”
By the rankings alone, the No. 11 Falcons beating the No. 3 Scorpions would be considered an upset — but the rankings were also deceptive. Much like No. 6 Benson in the previous round, the Scorpions were unlucky to have to compete with Veritas this early.
The Falcons were seeded No. 11 because they only played eight matches during the season. If Veritas had a chance to play 10 matches — as Sedona did — Scorpions coach Phil Kovac noted that it would have easily been a Top 5 team.
“I think we played very well,” SRRHS No. 1 singles player, Sofia Zimmerman said. “Veritas Prep is very good. We knew that coming in that they would be a challenge.”
The loss ended an otherwise perfect season for Sedona. The Scorpions completed the regular season at 10-0 and were the Division III, Section VI champions. They hosted Glendale Prep in the first round of the playoffs on Thursday, April 29 and defeated the Griffins 6-3.
One of the assets that Sedona had throughout the season was its depth. Even if teams had a strong No. 1 singles player or doubles team, they never had the depth to beat Sedona during the regular season and rarely ever even came close. Zimmerman also gave a lot of credit to Kovac.
“He’s the most generous guy with the team,” Zimmerman said. “He gives us free shoes and rackets. He incorporates everyone. He’s a great coach. He’s been through a lot this last year — especially with COVID — and we’re beyond thankful to have him as our coach.”
One final bit of silver lining for the Scorpions is their youth. Zimmerman and No. 5 singles player Izzy Constante will graduate, but the rest of the team is made up of nothing but sophomores. So, Sedona’s team will return much of its core to the courts in not only 2022 but 2023, as well.
“It was the best season I’ve had, by far, throughout my four years,” Zimmerman said. “I could not be prouder to be a senior and be such a great team, especially since all of them except me and one other girl [Constante] are sophomores. I’m definitely going to keep up with how they’re doing and stay in touch with them.
And while next season will get underway in the spring, the work will begin much sooner.
“We’re going to practice through the summer and we’re going to come back stronger,” Grondin said. “I’m proud of everybody and I think we’ll be really good next year.”
