After winning the FCIAC Tournament on May 29th, Greenwich High School’s varsity girls tennis team began its journey toward what it hopes, is another title, when it hosted Glastonbury High School on June 1st in the opening round of the CIAC Class LL Tournament.

And the defending Class LL state champion Cardinals certainly showed that they’re primed to travel to their final destination.

Second-seeded host Greenwich took its first step toward winning another state championship, sweeping 15th-seeded Glastonbury, 5-0, in the first round of the Class LL Tournament. The 19-0 Cardinals advanced to today’s Class LL quarterfinals, where they will host 10th-seeded Wilton at 2 p.m.

Greenwich, which defeated Staples for the 2024 Class LL state championship one season ago, received victories at first-third singles and first-second doubles against Glastonbury, which only brought seven players to the opening-round match and defaulted at fourth singles and third doubles.

“It’s a good starting point and a good way to get back into it after a few days off,” Greenwich junior Shining Sun said of the Cardinals’ victory against Glastonbury. “It was a good way to get back into the rhythm of match mentality.”

The Cardinals, who topped Fairfield Ludlowe, 4-0, for the FCIAC Tournament Championship at Wilton High School on May 29th, continued their pattern of sweeping their opponents when Glastonbury came to town. Sun won her match at first singles for the Cards against Jasleen Kaur, 6-0, 6-2.

Ahead 3-0, in the first set, Sun broke Kaur’s serve, then held, to take a commanding 5-0 lead.

“I did work on my volleys a little and there was some stuff I was working on to hit cleaner shots more often,” Sun said.

At No. 1 doubles, senior Yume Inagawa and sophomore Cameron Sowter were fabulous once again, winning in straight sets versus Glastonbury’s Marianne Sanabria-Tejera/Sarah Zhang, 6-0, 6-0. The Cardinals’ duo are undefeated on the season after winning the CIAC Invitational doubles championship in 2024.

“It was a nice match to play against a team I didn’t recognize,” said Inagawa, a team captain. “I didn’t know what to expect, so that’s what got me ready for states. I’m excited, today’s match was a good way to start the state tournament.”

There’s always a little bit of an unknown factor in the state tournament. However, Greenwich plays a familiar foe today (June 2) when it goes up against Wilton in the quarterfinals. Should the Cardinals win, they will host the Darien-Fairfield Ludlowe winner tomorrow (June 3). If they advance to the Class LL final, they may face an unfamiliar opponent, if Staples doesn’t advance to the championship match. South Windsor, Newtown and Amity are among the other teams still playing in the Class LL tourney.

“We didn’t play this team before, so we didn’t know what to expect,” Sowter said following the victory against Glastonbury. “But I think it was the perfect match to ease into states and get ourselves prepared for the matches to come.”

Greenwich’s win over Fairfield Ludlowe in last week’s FCIAC final gave the Cardinals their 13th conference championship. They have won 11 CIAC Class LL state championships.

“It’s great, we came off the finals feeling amazing and I think that boosted everyone’s confidence going into states,” Sowter noted.

In the No. 2 doubles match, senior captain Emme Pecorin and junior Maddy Wilber cruised to victory for Greenwich against Sophia Luo/Samantha Jacques, 6-0, 6-0.

“Today we did a good job, we were able to win our match, so that was exciting,” Pecorin said. “Overall, we’re excited for the next round of states.”

Since they’re seeded second, the Cardinals have home court advantage until the tournament’s championship match, when it switches to a neutral location.

“I think it’s great, it’s nice to have a bunch of supporters,” Pecorin noted. “It’s nice to know that we have a lot of support.”

Said Wilber: “States is always fun, because you can branch out more and play some teams that you haven’t played before. We never played this team, so it’s always an exciting element.”

The Cards’ quarterfinal-round opponent, Wilton, moved on by edging seventh-seeded Hall, 4-3, in the opening round. GHS beat Wilton, 7-0, in April, but knows it must be at its best against a battle-tested FCIAC foe such as Wilton.

“They’re definitely a great team, I haven’t played them this year personally, but I know they’re a great team,” Wilber said. “We’re going to try to get some rest and do the best that we can.”

Junior Caitlin Mahoney coasted to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Glastonbury’s Zoe Fedeles, continuing her dominant season at No. 2 singles.

“I thought it went well, I enjoyed getting out there again after we had a successful day on Thursday,” Mahoney said.

Mahoney dictated the pace and was her usual extremely consistent self in her matchup at the No. 2 singles spot.

“I tried to keep my opponent moving around and I think it worked out well,” Mahoney said. “I stayed consistent and was moving her side to side. I think that worked well for me. I am looking forward to the next round. Hopefully, it goes well.”

Third singles saw senior captain Izzy Everett win her match for the Cards versus Amanda Yi, 6-0, 6-1.

“I think that it’s a great start and our team is really dynamic and solid,” Everett said. “It’s really nice to be on these courts. We have that privilege of having home court advantage and it’s definitely nice.”

Indeed, the Cardinals know the matches will come up quickly, as they play each day in the state tournament.

“Collectively as a team, we’re aware of the fact that we have to conserve ourselves and keep in fine shape for these four days,” Everett noted.

Avery Li was slated to play at fourth singles for Greenwich versus Glastonbury, but the match did not take place, since the visitors didn’t bring a fourth singles player. Juniors Bella Barban and Olivia Popp, Greenwich’s No. 3 doubles team, also didn’t compete in their match, as Glastonbury’s third duo didn’t travel with their squad.

“We’re going to do what we can to do it again, because we’ve shown to ourselves that we can do it,” Sun said of the Cardinals’ goal of repeating as state tournament champions. “If we can win FCIACs, we can win states. I think that we can do it.”