Preps notebook: Palo Verde tennis star eyes another title

Palo Verde’s run of five consecutive girls state team tennis titles came to an end with a 10-7 loss to Coronado in last Friday’s championship match, but Panthers standout Remi Rice is ready to move on.

In fact, she hopes to start a new streak.

The top-ranked defending state champion has not lost a 5A Southern League match in the past two seasons, and she heads into this week’s individual championship tourney as the heavy favorite to win another title.

Although she is aware of the expectations, Rice avoids looking too far ahead.

“I try to think of it as one match at a time,” said Rice, whose only three nonleague losses this season came against elite competition at the Vegas Invitational Cup tournament in August. “I always try to enjoy my matches, play hard and stay mentally stable.”

Mental stability is a big part of Rice’s game, and she is unbothered by last week’s team loss. She said she finished the event with nothing but positive memories.

“It was a lot of fun,” said Rice, who went 3-0 at No. 1 singles in the tourney. “It was close, and I was excited just to be able to play.”

Palo Verde coach Gordon Hammond said his top player has the right outlook.

“She cares, but the best players move on,” he said. “They move on quicker than the others.”

Though reluctant to make predictions, Rice believes she can win the individual crown.

“I think warming up is a huge part of it,” said Rice, who is the only member of her family involved in competitive tennis. “I want to be prepared for every match and focus on each point instead of the next round.”

Hammond said Rice’s strengths are consistency, an ability to avoid major mistakes and a talent for mixing up the pace of her game. Even when she falls behind — as she did in her third-set victory in the team tourney — she is able to refocus and battle back.

“She might miss a few, but then she just locks it back in,” the coach said.

And that will be Rice’s mindset as she takes the court Wednesday to begin the defense of her individual title.

“She’s the No. 1 seed and she’s got a good chance of winning it,” Hammond said. “She’s healthy and she’ll be trying her best.”

Rice, who is in the early stages of college recruitment, will be joined in this week’s tournament by teammates Tallulah Pinjuv and Nikki Perrin.

“Remi is a quiet leader,” Hammond said. “She mostly plays, wins and smiles.”

Other top competition in the individual field is likely to come from Coronado’s Erika Gallegos (No. 2), Hanna Wright and Kamilah Saine (No. 3), Bishop Gorman’s Camila Perez and Victoria Perez, and Clark’s Ayuka Sugai.

First-round action begins Tuesday at Spring Valley before moving to Bishop Gorman for the remainder of the week. The championship match is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday. The doubles tourney will follow the same schedule, with Coronado’s Isabella Gallegos and Gigi Smart entering as the top-seeded team.

Boys tennis

Faith Lutheran defeated Coronado 10-4 Monday in the state team championship match, but Palo Verde has the top seed in this week’s boys 5A individual tournament. Mikele Longo, the Panthers’ top player, enters as the man to beat. Teammates Joey Juhasz (No. 2) and Balin Gupta (No. 4) are also strong contenders, along with No. 3 Lucas Rago of Bishop Gorman and Coronado’s Grant Lee (No. 5).

Individual first-round action begins Tuesday at Spring Valley and will continue at Bishop Gorman for the rest of the week. The championship match is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday. The doubles tourney will follow the same schedule, with Faith Lutheran’s Beckham Butler and Sam Gastaldo going in as the top-seeded team.

Girls cross country

Coronado’s Brooke-Lynn Miller defeated 129 other runners to win the Lake Mead Invitational large schools race Saturday at Veterans Memorial Park in Boulder City with a 5-kilometer time of 18 minutes, 46 seconds. Shadow Ridge’s Elynn Okuda was second in 19:21 and Faith Lutheran’s Sophia Weisz took third in 19:36.

Shadow Ridge placed three athletes in the top 10 to win the team title with 65 points. Coronado (72) finished second and Faith Lutheran (89) was third.

Boys cross country

Centennial’s Calvin Rivera defeated the 143-runner boys field at the Lake Mead Invitational, finishing the 5K course in 16:09. Teammate Kingston Lueck (16:21) took second place and Green Valley’s Reese Leoncavallo (16:29) was third.

Centennial won the team championship with 67 points, Shadow Ridge (72) placed second and Arbor View finished a distant third with 149 points.

Contact Jeff Wollard at jwollard@reviewjournal.com.