COACHING THEM UP: Princeton High girls’ tennis head coach Sarah Hibbert, left, talks strategy with her first doubles team of Maya-Alexandra Todorov and Ashley Chen during a recent match. Last Friday, third-seeded PHS defeated second-seeded WW/P-North 4-1 in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA)Central Jersey Group 3 sectional semifinals, avenging a 3-2 loss to the Northern Knights in late September. The Tigers, now 10-1, were slated to play at top-seeded Red Bank Regional in the sectional final on October 18 with the victor advancing to the state Group 3 semis on October 20 at the Mercer County Park tennis complex. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
By Bill Alden
In late September, the Princeton High girls’ tennis second doubles team of Ashna Bushan and Sophie Miller lost a tough three-setter to WW/P-North as the Tigers got edged 3-2 in the match.
When the foes met last Friday at the Mercer County Park tennis complex in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Central Jersey Group 3 sectional semifinals, the pair of freshman Bushan and senior Miller were primed to turn the tables on North’s Anusha Kumar and Odette Liu.
Bushan saw smarter play as a key in the rematch. “We tried to communicate better and focus more on getting the balls in rather than trying to hit harder,” said Bushan.
Miller was concentrating on bringing a positive mindset to round two.
“The coach (Sarah Hibbert) said not to get frustrated with our last match, and we didn’t do that,” said Miller. “We went in wanting to win and not just being frustrated that we lost last time.”
The PHS pair frustrated their foes, rolling a 6-1 win in the first set. more