TENNIS: Valdeavilla one tough Tiger

By Scott Galetti, Staff Writer

SOUTH PASADENA - In tennis, age is generally irrelevant if you possess talent.
South Pasadena High School's Marivick Valdeavilla has been blessed with the necessary talent to be competitive in many different age groups.
Competitive not only in Southern California, but nationally.
Valdeavilla is ranked in the top 30 nationally in the 16-under division (No. 6 in Southern California) and is in the top 20 in Southern California in the 18-under group.
"I've been playing tennis since I was 8, so I basically started tournaments at a young age," Valdeavilla said. "So all the people that I'm playing in CIF, I've seen before.
"Tennis, to me, is sort of like a bar and I have to prove that I can achieve my best and that exemplifies in life. I feed on the competition and love the fact that I need to improve on things and keep getting better and better."
As a freshman, Valdeavilla almost achieved something that all players set out to do - win a CIF championship. She came close both individually and with her teammates.
South Pasadena went undefeated in Rio Hondo League play and reached the CIF-Southern Section Division III semifinals.
The Tigers tied eventual champion Chadwick 9-9, but lost based on the number of games won.
"My goal as a freshman was to get to know my team and get us as far as we could go," Valdeavilla said. "It really crushed us when we lost in the semifinals, but it gave us a taste of the competition.
"We're just basically improving and focusing on getting to that championship final match."
Valdeavilla also got the taste of going deep in the postseason individually as she reached the semifinal round.
Before losing to Dos Pueblos' Jordan Dockerdorf, Valdeavilla had gone undefeated. She didn't lose a set during team play the entire season.
"She's our cornerstone," Tigers coach Mike Amerine said. "She's so mentally strong that every match, she's expecting to win and it's contagious to the rest of the team."
According to Amerine, Valdeavilla's determination and refusal to lose is her No. 1 asset.
"She has a very well-rounded game," Amerine said. "There's a lot of tennis players that hit the ball well, but her will to win is always there.
"She's giving it 100 percent all the time."
Amerine hadn't seen Valdeavilla play before she arrived at South Pasadena as a freshman.
It didn't take long for the Tigers coach to realize that he had something special.
"Every tennis coach hopes to get a freshman like that once in your career," Amerine said. "To have a nationally-ranked tournament player just doesn't happen.
"At our school, it's almost once in a generation."
Valdeavilla is not only a nationally-ranked junior player, she has brought home some hardware.
She has won two national titles, the 2005 Wilson Junior Championship and the 2006 California Bowl.
"Those are my biggest memories so far," Valdeavilla said.
Still, Valdeavilla, a strong baseline player, is trying to work on being a well-rounded player.
Just having her around is an advantage to both Amerine and his team.
"You get a player like that and the other girls see how she competes and how she hits, it's invaluable beyond just getting us points," Amerine said. "It's invaluable to the other girls to see somebody at that level, and it just brings the team to a higher level."
The Tigers have just two returning starters but have compiled a 4-0 record.
With Valdeavilla as the cornerstone, Amerine is confident of his team's chances.
"I think we're still in the mix," Amerine said. "We're learning how to compete and improving in every match."
And through tennis, Valdeavilla is learning valuable lessons about competition, both with her team and on her own.
"Tennis has taught me a lot about morals and how to live my life," Valdeavilla said.