Tiger Christa McDowell serves up the ball during doubles sets against the Saddleback Bobcats at Riverside City College on March 28. Photo by Stephen Day, Viewpoints. 
Tiger Alexandria Livingston slices under the ball, sending it over the net for the point during the doubles sets against Saddleback Bobcats at Riverside City College on March 28. Photo by Stephen Day, Viewpoints. 
Tiger Adrielle Fotchi swats the ball back over to the Saddleback Bobcats during doubles sets at Riverside City College on March 28. Photo by Stephen Day, Viewpoints.
By Izaiah Cerratos
Chaos and confusion defined the RCC women’s tennis team’s matchup against the Saddleback College Bobcats.
The day began with the official being absent. Players on both teams — surprised by the news — struggled to remember the scores of each set and the total game score.
“We’re supposed to have an official for every conference game, yet he hung up on me when I called,” head coach Nikki Bonzoumet said.
The Tigers were defeated by the Bobcats 7-2 on March 28.
Both coaches were visibly upset and frustrated with the absence of the official. No referee at the meet seemed to affect the game speed for the singles matchups more than the doubles.
RCC seemed flat throughout the afternoon. The Tigers had multiple games and practices canceled throughout the week, making it hard for them to find their rhythm. Early in the matchup Saddleback College grabbed the momentum and never looked back.
RCC played a clean matchup throughout the afternoon, with few points given away to faults or mental mistakes. They were just a few steps behind in most matchups. The Bobcats constantly took advantage of rallies and opening serves, with great precision and speed in their shots. They showed great distance control which Riverside struggled with.
Saddleback played strong defense which led to a great counter attack offense that gave the Tigers problems. Sophomore Susana Iniguez who participated in both doubles and singles acknowledged how strong and quick the Bobcats play.
“I like to play up close to the net,” Iniguez said. ”But they played strong and fast, taking me away from the net.”
The Bobcats were a well coached team, leaving very few points on the table. They kept calm through every set, giving RCC few opportunities to create momentum swings.
“I was happy to see us improve on what we have been working on in practice,” Bonzoumet said.
Bonzoumet acknowledged her team’s effort against a tough team. The Bobcats hold a record of 8-2 on the year.
Adrielle Fotchi had a strong outing in the singles portion of the afternoon. She showed her strength mentally and physically in a comeback victory.
“She lost the first set and found a way to turn it around, winning the next two sets to earn a win,” Bonzoumet said.
Even in a tough defeat, she was proud of the squad’s performance and how it stayed respectful despite the wild circumstances. The Tigers will look to close out the season strong with conference play coming to an end.
RCC ends the season with matchups against Cypress College March 30 and at Orange Coast College April 4.
