Portales confident entering state tennis championships

PORTALES — Confidence. If the Portales girls and boys tennis players who are competing at this week's NMAA A-4A State Tennis Tournament in Albuquerque can possess plenty of that, and leave their fears at the door, the Rams should have plenty of strong results by week's end, according to Coach Ann-Marie Bucksath.

Day 1 of the tournament will start today with singles and doubles matches at the Sierra Vista West Tennis Complex and the Jerry Cline Tennis Center, with the semifinals and finals back at Jerry Cline on Thursday. Team matches, meanwhile, will take place at Albuquerque Academy on Friday and Saturday.

"I expect us to do well," Bucksath said. "We just got to keep having confidence in ourselves, play loose and have fun." On the girls side, the Rams are the No. 4-seed as a team, and will face No. 5 Bosque at 10:30 a.m.

Singles will feature two Rams in No. 3 Sarah Blaeser and Zamorye Cox, while the doubles team of Kelly Fraze and Kinsey Bilberry will try to make a deep run in that category. On the boys side, Javier Gutierrez and Gerardo Calderon will pair up in doubles.

While all of the teams and individuals representing Portales this week will have tough matchups, the most intriguing - and toughest to watch for Bucksath, is the girls singles. That's because Cox and Blaeser will actually face one another head-to-head today, and oh yeah, they know each other well.

"Unfortunately, one of them won't advance to the semifinals," Bucksath explained. "It's hard for me as a coach, but I know that whoever advances will have a great chance of going far. Zamorye and Sarah are actually doubles partners and real good friends, so they know what each other can do and it should be really interesting to watch."

The winner will have a tough road with No. 2-ranked Haley Garcia from St. Mike's awaiting them, while No. 1 Brandelyn Fulgenzi from Robertson will likely be the toughest out in the tournament.

In doubles, Fraze and Bilberry will face the No. 2 pairing of Jordan Franzoy and Jaiden Coyle from Mesilla Valley at 4:30 p.m. What's interesting about Fraze and Bilberry is that they've only played doubles together on a couple of occasions, as an injury elsewhere left an opening for the Rams, and the duo ultimately decided that they wanted to play together.

One of the advantages that the two share is similarities in their game, namely, length. "Kelly and Kinsey are unique because they're both tall," Bucksath said. "They could be dangerous at the nets, and they're both amazing servers. They really try to keep each other up the whole time."

As for the team event on Friday, the No. 4 Rams face a Bosque team that Bucksath says is a little down from previous years. Not surprisingly, the No. 1 seed in the girls team tournament, Robertson, will be the ones to watch, as the traditional power trains all year long and should be as strong as ever.

Nonetheless, Bucksath still feels great about the Rams girls' chances, and she credits it to the work ethic of her girls. "We've worked so hard to prepare for the state tournament all year," Bucksath said. "They're one of the strongest groups I've had."

Boys will be represented by the aforementioned pairing of seniors Calderon and Gutierrez. They'll face Joseph Colonius and Victor Burns from Taos at 4:30. Bucksath says the two have done a great job throughout the year of figuring one another out, as Gutierrez, known at "The Wall," is a patient player that can make life difficult on opponents, while Calderon is good at dropping the ball short and slicing.

"They're seniors and I'm so happy for them, because they've never been to state before," Bucksath explained. "They've really started to understand what one another likes to do, and there's really no pressure, because they're gonna go in there with nothing to lose."

Overall, Bucksath says that this season has been a success. After coaching the girls for years, Bucksath had the added responsibility of coaching the boys team this year, as well. Despite doing double-duty, things have gone well, as Bucksath says that she's really starting to understand the true differences between coaching boys, compared to girls.

The best part, however, is the camaraderie and team unity that the two teams have built throughout the season. "The girls really welcomed the boys and they've all bonded in drills," Bucksath said. "They ended up being so supportive of each other. We're like a blended family."