Love-love: Sandoval having a racquet with Buffs tennis

By JENNIFER BAUTISTA 
The Tower 

Audrey Sandoval is a sophomore student at Manteca high School who puts her love and effort into the tennis team. 

Sandoval has fallen in love with tennis, which is the reason it’s become her main sport.

“She was a freshman when she first started (and) I don’t think she played organized tennis,” Manteca High tennis coach MaryAnne Tolbert said. “I do think she is a hard worker and willing to learn the drills, and she started to catch on right away. She continued to show up, which is half the battle, as getting those freshmen to show up and to want to be there and every single practice, we saw improvement.” 

Sandoval’s experiences show how much hard work and effort it takes one to be on the tennis team. She developed over the summer and returned for her sophomore season a much stronger player. Though she didn’t make the varsity team, Tolbert says she was an integral member of the junior varsity team.

“I think there was a jump, you could tell she practiced over the summer,” Tolbert said. “Probably not as much because you need that little hump to get to varsity, but you can definitely see improvement. … One of the things I can say that I’m very proud of her of and appreciate is her communication skills. A lot of kids her age don’t do very well communicating with adults when you’re going to miss or what you need. She had no problem Teams-chatting me; coming up to me and letting me know when she can do something or when she couldn’t. She was very open and honest with me and I can’t say how much I appreciate that level of maturity to talk and interact with adults.”

Sandoval says Tolbert was easy to talk to. The longtime tennis coach, one of the most decorated on a campus teeming with champions, has played a huge role in Sandoval’s development and comfort on the team. Sandoval credits Tolbert with keeping the team motivated during hard times. 

“My coach, Tolbert, was an amazing person to pick to help the tennis team to improve during practice,” Sandoval said. “She even put up with the team when we were all tired and angry mostly from the heat outside.” 

The Tower: How was your first experience with the JV team as a freshman and what was the difference for your sophomore year?

Audrey Sandoval: I was more lost in my freshmen year of JV than my 2nd year. I was more aware of what they suspected from the team and from me.

TT: What is one of your best experiences on the team? 

AS: Honestly, one of my best experiences must be my first match I won my second year of tennis back on Sept. 26.

TT: Who on the team gave you more encouragement during matches?

AS: My friend Sammy, who is also on the JV team, would always encourage me saying, “You got this Audrey, stay positive.” 

TT: How were you able to multitask and juggle both school and sports? 

AS: During the season, I put up boundaries. … Schoolwork is my main priority. I would ask classmates if I ever left early for tennis matches, same goes for missing any practices.