Vista coach enjoys leading coed team

Chris Evers wasn't sure how the tennis season would be this year.For the first time Vista del Lago has a coed team, as the Sierra Valley Conference voted to go coed this season. Evers is pleasantly surprised with his team, as it's off to a 4-2 start to the season."I wasn't sure how it was going to be, but I've gotten a lot of enjoyment from it," Evers said. "I've never coached girls before so I didn't know what to expect. They've added a nice dimension to the team. The guys have been receptive to them and we've got great team chemistry."In coed tennis, there are two singles players and two doubles teams for both the boys and girls plus a mixed doubles team, meaning seven boys and seven girls are in the varsity lineup. Evers has 11 boys on the roster to go along with 10 girls.Timmy Jacobs, James Carey and Saiyeesh Rathish are the top three male players, while Ella Zagorenko, Kriti Bhatia and Nikita Manvar sit on top of the girls' ladder."In coed there's more flexibility to the lineup, which I'm still getting used to," Evers said. "Timmy has played well at No. 1, while Ella has been dynamite with only one loss. This team has a lot of upside. They're hungry and they're competitive."Vista is coming of a 5-4 loss to River City on Thursday, but Evers was encouraged by his team's performance, as River City has been a strong coed team for years."River City is a good measuring stick for us," Evers said. "We had them tied at four and we lost the last match. I think the loss will keep the team motivated and working hard in practice."Evers said the team's goal is the win the league. Right now the Eagles, 2-1, trail both River City and Union Mine, who currently have 3-0 records.Vista's next match is a non-league battle against Oak Ridge at 3:45 p.m. on Thursday at Broadstone Racquet Club.