Valencia girls tennis duo headed to CIF-SS semis

The Valencia tennis doubles team of Amanda Tabanera and Carlotta Nonnis-Marzano point to their names on the CIF-SS Round of 16 at Seal Beach Tennis Center on Wednesday. Courtesy photo
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At the CIF-Southern Section Round of 16 on Wednesday, the Valencia doubles team of Amanda Tabanera and Carlotta Nonnis-Marzano found themselves trailing Annika Bassey and Kristina Evloeva early.

The Corona del Mar pair was laughing as the first set came to a close.

“(We knew) when they thought that that match was too easy for them,” said Nonnis-Marzano. “They won 6-0 in the first set, so they thought that was so easy … They were not making fun of us, but they thought it was too easy so just have fun.”

But the two Vikings weren’t there to have fun – they were at Seal Beach Tennis Center to win.

MORE: West Ranch’s Jordyn McBride advances to CIF-SS girls tennis Round of 16

They came back from their first-set loss to beat the Corona del Mar duo 6-4, 6-4. Tabanera and Nonnis-Marzano adjusted their game to play more aggressive and played farther back from the net.

“I think that the most important thing that we did was we were smart in the moment,” said Nonnis-Marzano. “We changed because if we didn’t change anything, we (would lose) 6-0.”

The Valencia tandem also beat Audry Vo and Olga Nagy of Mira Costa 6-0, 6-1 in their first match of the day.

The CIF-SS individual postseason is a new experience for Nonnis-Marzano, who is a foreign exchange student from Italy.

European tournaments have prepared her well for some of the best girls tennis California has to offer. However, she usually played singles before switching to doubles for CIF-SS play.

“I haven’t played doubles in one or two years,” said Nonnis-Marzano. “So it’s not new, but it’s new for me because I didn’t play doubles for two years. So for the level, I was pretty ready.”

Jordyn McBride of West Ranch also took the court for the Round of 16, but was eliminated after losing to Danielle Wilson 1-6, 2-6 in her first match.

Tabanera and Nonnis-Marzano will compete in the semifinals today at Seal Beach Tennis Center. The event begins at 11 a.m.

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