Edmonds-Woodway’s Amanda Waldron found out that energy and steadiness are the key to taking her game to the next level.
Waldron dropped the first set against Shorewood’s Anna Chatilo, but then rebounded to take the next two to win 5-7, 7-6 (7-1), 6-3 and help lead the Warriors to a 6-1 victory over the Thunderbirds in a Western Conference South Division girls tennis showdown April 16 at Edmonds-Woodway High School.
The Edmonds-Woodway junior improved to 9-0 and played her first three set match of the year.
“I didn’t come out with enough energy the first set,” said Waldron, who took over the Warriors’ No. 1 singles slot about a month ago. “I went for too many winners and should have played steadier. I figured that out in the second set and had a great tiebreaker score … after that I carried that momentum through the third set.”
Chatilo, a Class 4A state singles qualifier, lost only her second match in eight meets. The last time Waldron and Chatilo met was when the two were sophomores and playing No. 2 singles. Chatilo won their first match and Waldron took the rematch that year. Last season, Chatilo beat Kira Kearsley, Edmonds-Woodway’s No. 1 singles player.
“I knew it was going to be a really tough match,” Waldron said. “I’ve seen her play. She’s really talented. I knew I had to play my best. … That was probably the best I’ve ever played. It felt great.”
Shorewood coach Arnie Moreno appreciated playing such a talented squad as Edmonds-Woodway.
“I tell my team every time we play Edmonds-Woodway it’s going to make us better,” he said. “It’s a great challenge. We like playing tough teams.”
Chatilo battled hard in what was a back-and-forth second set and a tight third set.
“I think both of them were wearing down,” Moreno said.
The lone victory for Shorewood was Mackenzie Bang, who beat Michelle Nelson 4-6, 6-1, 6-1. Bang, a returning state qualifier in doubles, improved to 8-0.
Bang tends to be a slow starter, Moreno said, and sometimes it takes a set for her to figure out the opponent and get into a rhythm.
“She’s a great analyzer,” Moreno said. “She’s always looking at her game and making adjustments.”
Bang’s improvement from last year is huge and she started the season as the Thunderbirds’ No. 1 singles player before losing a challenge match two weeks later.
“Definitely, Mackenzie is a force to be reckoned with,” Moreno said.
As far as the league is concerned, Edmonds-Woodway is the team to beat. The Warriors improved to 9-0 and moved a step towards their goal of an undefeated season.
Edmonds-Woodway went 14-2 during Waldron’s freshman year and was 15-1 her sophomore season.
“We’re hoping to get the full 16-0 and go undefeated,” Waldron said.
Waldron spent the offseason working on her volleying and it really had made a major impact to her game.
“I did that a couple of times (against Chatilo) — came to the net and worked on my volleys,” Waldron said. “My serves have gotten a lot more powerful this season. It feels really good to finally have that.”
Waldron and Nelson teamed up in the postseason last year and won the Western Conference South Division and the Northwest District doubles championship.
It’s too early to start making decisions on what they will do this season, Waldron said.
As for Shorewood, Moreno said it’s more than likely that Bang will play doubles in the postseason since that would her best opportunity to get back to the state tournament.
Possible partners included No. 3 singles player Christine Yang or even Chatilo if she decided to play doubles.
“Right now we’ve got some options,” Moreno said.
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