Aztec Tennis Ready For CIF Playoffs

The Palm Desert High boys tennis team has earned the top seed in the CIF-Southern Section Division II tennis championship pairings, CIF officials announced Monday.

The question is: Can the Aztecs get back to full sharpness after running roughshod over a lackluster Desert Valley League that provided no major competition?

The Aztecs have faced championship caliber teams early in the season, with wins over Division 1 monster Corona Del Mar, and San Diego supersquad Poway. Palm Desert’s only loss this year came to another Division 1 powerhouse, Rolling Hills Estates Peninsula High.

Head tennis coach Randy Blalock says his team is ready because of playoff experience.

“One thing that is in our favor is the fact that my team, especially juniors and seniors, have extensive experience in postseason playoffs as they have been in the finals or semis in the past three years,'' he said. "This is a big help.”

Those past three years have resulted in two trips to the CIF Division II finals, and a loss in the semifinal round.

“It isn’t until CIF Team play starts up that the team begins its preparation (with each round progressively getting tougher).” Blalock said. “It allows us to work out any kinks we might be experiencing and fine tune our line up.”

Palm Desert has a quality to its roster that few schools can match. Of the top 12 players, nine are ranked by the SCTA/USTA. The Aztecs also feature two of the top SCTA freshmen to add depth for seasons to come. 

The Aztecs start the playoff bracket on Wednesday hosting the winner of Tuesday’s wild card round match between Hoover and Anaheim/Canyon.