The Kern Valley tennis team will begin their season tomorrow at home against Corcoran.
Under first-year head coach Sabine Mixon the Lady Broncs will look for success on the courts this season. She was an assistant coach two years prior. Mixon has had a long and stories coaching career at Kern Valley as she begins her 13th year of coaching. In a turnaround, Brent Mixon, was the previous head coach, will now be the assistant coach. She will also get help from Kelsey Mixon, who was an athlete at York University in Nebraska.
The Lady Broncs currently have 11 players on the squad, with five returners from last season. There is only one senior on the relatively young squad. Senior, Marissa Tate returns for Kern Valley and joins junior returners, Kyra Flint and Abbie Phillips. Rounding out the returners are sophomores, Elizabeth Davis and Karsyn Liske.
Three juniors, a sophomore and a pair of freshmen athletes join the Lady Broncs this year. The juniors are Summer Santos, Taylor Beam, and Ariel Balan. The new sophomore to the squad is Allison Watkins, while the two new freshmen are Kylie Griswold and Amberlynn Salinas.
S. Mixon as the head coach faces a special challenge with the team. Despite having the experienced five returners back, the other six need that are playing tennis on the squad for the first time. Her goal for the season is to advance the returners to a higher level, while letting the new team members that they are also part of the team. S. Mixon said, “We have five returners and six that are learning to swing a racket for the first time. The unique challenge that we have is that the only tennis courts in all of the valley are located at the high school behind a locked gate. Most of our youth do not get exposure to tennis until they become high school students. We have one senior who is a four-year returner and two juniors who have three years of experience. While we work on expanding the strengths and game strategies of our returners, we also need to focus on fundamental skills for those learning the game.”
In order to attain this goal, the head coach will rely on her coaching staff to get these athletes ready for the season. She said, “We are fortunate to have three coaches working with 11 girls so we can give individual time and attention to the diverse needs of the team members.”
In the non-league matches on Kern Valley’s schedule, it is the hope that the Lady Broncs gain the valuable court experience to play competitive tennis when league action comes around. S. Mixon commenting on the non-league said, “We are looking forward to gaining experience in game play during our non-league matches.”
In the HDL, Kern Valley will be up against some tough competition from Desert and Bishop. According to S. Mixon, these are the teams that have had league success in the past. The Lady Roadrunners of Rosamond are also in the HDL. The Lady Broncs will have five non-league matches before heading into HDL action.
The head coach sees the strength of her team in the way these athletes actually become a team. She said, “We have strong leadership and positive attitudes on the tennis team. Year after year, the girls build a family type of relationship, which makes the season so much fun.” Turning the page to the areas that need work are the lack of tennis courts in the area and time on those courts is the challenge encountering the Lady Broncs tennis squad. S. Mixon said, “We need more time on the court with a racket in hand from a much younger age.”
In closing, the Lady Broncs head coach said, “It would be great if the valley could have a recreation area with tennis and pickleball courts not only for the youth of the valley, but also for the mature community. I know that there are various organizations working toward that goal. It is unfortunate that the schools, where various facilities do exist, must be fenced for the safety and security of our children. However, it would be beneficial to the people of our valley if the County of Kern could find a place to develop a multi-use recreational area to be used by people across the generation spectrum.”
With a strong commitment and a quality coaching staff, the Lady Broncs are on the right path to success in this upcoming season. Their season starts at home and the hope is to gain the upper hand right from the onset.
