Alex Gaal and Evan Han advance in CIF tennis

Cameron Richter
Staff Writer

Mira Costa boys tennis players Alex Gaal and Evan Han took on Bishop Montgomery and Long Beach Poly at Whitter Narrows Tennis Center on Thursday Afternoon in two California Interscholastic Federation doubles matches. They defeated both of their opponents in two sets and now qualify for further CIF competition.

“Going into the first match, we didn’t feel too worried,” Han said, “We were just happy that we were finally going to be able to play because we had just waited for four and a half hours.”

Costa received a first round bye and was matched up against Bishop Montgomery in the second round of the tournament. In their first match against Bishop Montgomery, sophomore Gaal and junior Han dominated the first set, not letting up a single point, and defeated Bishop 6-0. The next set they continued their dominance, letting up one point as they won 6-1, taking the first match.

“We knew even after the first set that we had to continue playing well.” Gaal said, “We were playing a good team and could easily beat us if we let up and gave them an oppurtunity to win.”

The second set was again dominated by Costa, as Gaal and Han defeated their next opponent, Long Beach Poly. They won the first set with a score of 6-1. They duo was only one set away from taking the match and advancing even further into CIF competition. The last set was a bit more competitive, but Gaal and Han still managed to win 6-2, taking the second set, winning the match, and advancing further into the CIF tournament.

“It felt really good after we won the match,” Gaal said, “But we have to get focused again and get ready for our next match so that we can advance even further into CIF.”

This victory qualifies Gaal and Han for further CIF competition. They find out which school they will be taking on in the next round on Tuesday June 2nd. The round of 16 and quarter finals will take place at Seal Beach Tennis Center on Friday, June 6th. If Han and Gaal can win those two matches they will participate in the Semifinals and finals at the same location on Saturday, June 7th.

“If we continue to play the way we did, then we have a good chance of making a solid run in CIF.” Han said.