Highline College’s women’s tennis team started their conference run, and found ease within the matchups. The team took on Bellevue College, winning 6-3 as a team. They also took on Spokane College, which ended in a 9-0 sweep for the Thunderbirds. 

During the team’s home opener matchup against Bellevue, they found themselves focused on the court, no matter what was thrown at them. Standout players for the night included Sophia Crosby and Caley Buchan, who both took wins in their singles and doubles matches. 

Thunderbirds tennis showed numerous amounts of pride during their first home matchup for the 2025 season. The team was energetic on the court, supporting themselves, but also their teammates. You could hear the chat “Let’s go Highline, Let’s go T-birds” throughout the courts.

Singles:

1. Sophia Crosby (HC) defeats Bean Lowe (BC)7-5, 7-6 (9-7)
2. Caley Buchan (HC) defeats Emma Wetzel (BC) 6-1, 6-1
3. Meiweya Amazona (BCC) defeats Adriana Barbee (HC)6-2, 6-4
4. Anna Shved (HC) defeats Sadie Wilson (BC) 7-5, 6-4
5. Shanna Chua (BC) defeats Zanna Orvald (HC) 6-4, 6-1
6. Dani Carlisle (HC) defeats Lily Distelhorst (BC) 6-3, 6-2

Doubles:

1. Crosby/Orvald (HC) defeat Lowe/Chua (BC) 8-5
2. Buchan/Barbee (HC) defeat Amazona/Legaspi (BC) 8-6
3. Wetzel/Wilson (BC) defeat Carlisle/Berry (HC) 8-4

The following weekend, the Thunderbirds hosted Spokane College, who were last year’s NWAC tennis champions. To no surprise, Highline had a dominating performance and got handled business swiftly, taking down Spokane with a 9-0 sweep.

Standout player for this match was freshman Jeslyn Berry, who had a dominating singles performance, winning 6-0, 6-1. The team continues their undefeated conference score with these two weekend matchups. 

Singles:

1. Sophia Crosby won 6-4, 6-2
2. Caley Buchan secured a 6-3, 6-4 win
3. Zanna Orvald battled for a 6-3, 6-4 victory
4. Anna Shved took a thrilling 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (9-7) win
5. Dani Carlisle won 6-4, 6-3
6. Jeslyn Berry dominated 6-0, 6-1

Doubles:

1. Crosby/Orvald won 8-3
2. Buchan/Barbee took an 8-2 victory
3. Elder/Pearson finished strong with an 8-2 win

When asked about the performance of the T-birds, head coach Laura Rosa said, “I cannot take any credit for the success of the T-bird Tennis team so far this season. This team has been fully bought in since individual summer workouts and is on a mission to prove themselves as legitimately one of the best college tennis teams in the Pacific Northwest.”

Rosa added, “The sophomore leadership has been tremendous and the freshmen came in ready to immediately contribute. This is an entirely selfless group of young women who day after day have been willing to sacrifice any individual glory for the sake of team wins.”

Lastly, when speaking about what fans can expect from the T-birds’ final home matchup of the season, Rosa said, “The match on Saturday will give us a chance to recognize our three outstanding sophomores, Caley Buchan, Sophie Crosby, and Henleigh Elder.”

“We historically have had the biggest and loudest fan base of NWAC tennis and expect a great crowd to show up and cheer us on. My expectation is that the team will continue to show focus and pride and hopefully walk away from that match still undefeated in conference play,” Rosa ended with. 

Within the team’s first two conference matchups, they are shaping up to be contenders for the NWAC Championship, and even winning it. They’ve shown immense pride during their season, and will hopefully continue to do so as the season continues.

Catch your T-birds hosting Treasure Valley College for yet another home matchup on Saturday, March 15 at 8:30 a.m. at the Boeing Employees Tennis Center in Kent for their sophomore recognition day!