AdminHermehr Kaur has plastered her name all over the CIF-SS girls tennis postseason brackets for three straight seasons, reaching the round of 16 in 2015. The Redlands High School junior advanced to the round of 16 as part of a doubles team two years ago, but this season was her deepest run as a singles […]
Hermehr Kaur has plastered her name all over the CIF-SS girls tennis postseason brackets for three straight seasons, reaching the round of 16 in 2015.
The Redlands High School junior advanced to the round of 16 as part of a doubles team two years ago, but this season was her deepest run as a singles player.
She didn’t lose until encountering eventual three-time CIF-SS individual champion, UCLA-bound senior Ena Shibahara of Palos Verdes Peninsula.
“When they see the same name three years in a row, she’s got that name recognition now,” Redlands coach Sean Comadena said of Kaur. “It’s like when the same school does well year after year. Hermehr has put herself in that position.”
Kaur went 37-2 in the regular season and won her second Citrus Belt League singles title in as many tries.
She lost just two games in the first three rounds of the playoffs before polishing off her round of 32 opponent with a 6-0 victory in the second set.
Once the 581 CIF-Southern Section schools are boiled down to 16 singles players, an elite group of players is all that’s left.
“At that point, it’s not really about high school anymore because we all see each other at national tournaments,” Kaur said. “It’s all girls that will be playing Division I tennis. Once you’re past the round of 32, that’s when it really begins.”
With three-time defending champion Shibahara graduating, the door is ajar for Kaur in 2016. Winning the CIF-SS individual tournament isn’t easy for anybody, but Kaur has landed herself in the conversation for next season.
“I very much think she could make it into the top eight and any one of those girls can win it,” Comadena said. “She works so hard at it that she’s giving herself a chance. Anybody needs a little luck to go their way to win the whole tournament but Hermehr is in the middle of that discussion.”
Her junior season may technically be over, but Kaur said there is plenty of work to be done to reach her next attainable goal. Kaur is hoping to land a Division I scholarship, something she will go a long way toward determining over the next few months.
“You know that time when seniors are applying for colleges and trying to put their best foot forward so they can get in,” Kaur said.
“That’s what I’ll be doing for tennis while I’m a junior. I’m going to be playing in a lot of tournaments in front of a lot of college coaches soon and they’re going to be choosing who they want to offer scholarships.”
~ Source: sbsun.com