Central Valley High School’s boys tennis team has 27 players on its roster this year.
“Tennis has a good culture and name at our school,” said Nimrat Chahal, second-year head coach of the Hawks. “Mike (Rodriguez) started that. The kids have fun out there. They’re with their friends. They start to take it more serious because they want to win.”
The Hawks have high hopes for the 2025 season.
“We’re not rebuilding,” Chahal said. “We have some returners. We have kids that want to be here and work. That definitely helps. Our goal is to challenge for a playoff spot. I think it’s possible.”
Central Valley returns 11 players from last year, including Anantah Sivongxay (Sr.), Israel Guajardo (Jr.), Avori Ortega (Jr.), Silas Rodriguez (Jr.), Alexander Aguilar (Jr.), Jaylen Tagadaya (Jr.), Darien Pongbandith (Sr.), Leonardo Navarro (So.), Isaiah Ramos (So.), Christian Jimenez Gomez (So.) and Erik Muniz (Jr.).
The Hawks have 16 newcomers: Blake Silva (Jr.), Roman Parodi (So.), Emmanuel Carranza (Sr.), Rehman Ali (So.), Osvaldo Cisneros (Jr.), Julian Sanchez (So.), Christopher Martinez (Jr.), Simardeep Malhi (So.), Joshua Rubio (So.), Andres Botero (So.), Andrew Arevalo (So.), Abram Munguia (So.), Sahi Pattar (So.), Isaiah Tapia (Fr.), Gurtaj Saran (Fr.) and Donavin Decena (Fr.).
Dylan Chauhan, Uriel Mendoza and Leonardo Monroy were lost to graduation.
Sivongxay, Guajardo, Ortega, Rodriguez, Aguilar and Tagadaya will play singles.
Pongbandith, Navarro, Silva, Carranza, Parodi and Cisneros will play doubles.
Sivongxay, Guajardo and Tagadaya are team captains.
“We trust those three guys,” Chahal said. “They turned into leaders. They’re reliable. They know what to expect. They’ve been playing for the program for the last couple of years.”
Central Valley compiled a 4-8 record en route to a fifth-place finish in the Central California Conference standings last spring.
The Hawks will face different competition in 2025.
Central Valley moved from the CCC to the Western Athletic Conference as part of the Sac-Joaquin Section’s league realignment plan.
“Competitively-speaking, it’s better for all of our sports programs,” Chahal said.
The Hawks will battle Beyer, Grace Davis, Johansen, Lathrop and Livingston.
Ceres High and Pacheco are not fielding teams due to a lack of interest.
Livingston previously competed in the Trans Valley League.
Los Banos and Mountain House relocated from the WAC to the CCC and Valley Oak League, respectively.
The top three teams in the WAC will be awarded playoff berths.
The Hawks experienced their last winning season in 2022. Central Valley posted an 8-4 record while finishing in third place in the CCC. The Hawks returned to the playoffs following a six-year absence.
Central Valley advanced to the postseason three times under Rodriguez’s guidance.
“The quality of tennis in the CCC was higher,” Chahal said. “We’ll be more competitive in the WAC. Teams are more even. Anybody can be beaten on any given day.”
