Written by: Jarrel Koh
Edited by: Jared Rajiv
Photos by: EusoffWorks
Eusoff Tennis (F) wrapped up this season’s IHG journey in their finals against Temasek Hall. Despite the female tennis team’s wishes (as well as the male tennis team, Eusoffian supporters and the commentator 😔), the finals matches were played on all 5 courts concurrently. As a fun brain teaser, feel free to come up with a 500 word essay discussing whether a 3-2 format is better for increased support and focus or a 5 court format to save time.
For Singles, we have Wei Shan, Erica, and Jolene - the same lineup as the semi-finals. For Doubles, Min and Violet continued to showcase their chemistry, while Bernice joined Renee in the second doubles. (the matches are written in chronological order of completion)
Wei Shan was up against a formidable opponent from TH, and despite her best efforts, Wei Shan lost 0-2. To be fair, she was expecting a tough fight before facing her opponent, and even if she lost she wanted to have fun. We hope that it was a good first IHG experience for her as a freshie nonetheless, and she can only continue to improve her tennis skills from here.
Bernice and Renee were also unfortunately matched up against TH’s best doubles. The freshie pair fought hard and did their best, and there were good plays made such as Bernice hitting sick volleys which made the Eusoffian crowd go wild. Renee also proved her skill as both a singles and doubles player this IHG and stood her ground well, drawing from her JC tennis experience. The match score was 0-2, and it was a tough loss for our freshie pair who were up against IVP players. They still did Eusoff proud and with more experience they will undoubtedly come back stronger in future matches.
Min and Violet communicated well on the court, and remained composed throughout the entire match even when it got rocky. Violet made good runs and volleys and together with Min’s power smashes they managed to take a perfect second game in their first set. Their match was extremely close throughout, and the first set ended with a tiebreaker, which they lost 6-7. The next set was equally close, but unfortunately TH narrowly took the match 4-6, and 0-2 overall.
Min rising up for the smash to finish off the point
This meant that TH had already secured their finals victory, but that didn’t stop our remaining players from continuing to play their hearts out. Jolene played the second longest match in terms of duration, meaning that each of her individual games were very close and the scoreline was constantly tight. She had several good comeback games, but lost the first set 4-6. Her second set was much stronger, 6-2. However, perhaps due to a lack of energy, and also added pressure from previous match losses, she lost the third set 3-6. Even still, her strokes and form remained strong and relatively consistent towards the end, and her stamina is certainly commendable.
Erica made a well-fought comeback against her opponent and played the longest match. She lost the first set 4-6, but decided that she wouldn’t have any of that, and had a dominant second set, winning 6-2. Even the TH player called her fierce. With the support of her boyfriend <3 from the side, Erica took the final set 6-4. She truly embodied the Eusoffian fighting spirit.
Although Eusoff Tennis may not have won their finals, they definitely won our hearts, keeping up their energy throughout IHG and mutually supporting each other whether they won or lost. It’s time for them to take a well deserved break before coming back stronger next season. GOOD FIGHT TENNIS F!!!
Although it was not the result we wanted, we are still very proud of our female tennis team for putting up an intense fight!
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