After a rough 2015 season for both Bakersfield College men’s and women’s tennis teams, they opened with wins and are striving for a winning record this season.

BC men’s tennis closed out last season with a 3-10 record, and coach Nicholas Jacobs explained that he doesn’t see that repeating this season.

“For the men, I have pretty high expectations,” said Jacobs.

The top three players for the men’s team are Sammy Ramirez, Andrew Schwartz and Austin Lee.

“Right now, Sammy is the top dog. When Sammy is rolling and getting in the screw, it’s hard to stop him. He’s going to be the one, I think, that we are going to lean on as the leader this year,” said Jacobs.

Jacobs explained that the team is starting to get the chemistry that is necessary for wins.

BC women’s team on the other hand was winless last season, and Jacobs explained that the matches were not even close.

He said he expects the women’s team to do much better than last year.

“To come and start 2-0 is the ideal start,” said Jacobs.

BC tennis added Nicholas Loudermilk as the assistant coach and he will be overseeing the women’s team.

Loudermilk is a former BC tennis player.

The top three players are Riley Tucker, Brittany Aguilar and Ashley Guillen. Jacobs explained that Kaylee Defrees (No. 4 on the team) and Lucy Cisneros (No. 5) are the sleepers of team.

The men opened up the season at home where they faced off with Reedley College and swept the Tigers, 9-0.

BC men’s singles winners: Ramirez (BC) vs. Aaron Reimer (6-2, 6-0), Schwartz (BC) vs. Aaron Gomez (6-2, 6-1), Lee (BC) vs. Robert Cardenas (6-4, 6-3), Andrew Berdon (BC) vs. Gabriel Tovar (6-1, 6-0), Matt Wells (BC) vs. Roberto Torres (6-1, 6-0), and Kyler Fields (BC) Carlos Delamora (6-0, 6-1).

BC men’s doubles winners: Ramirez and Lee (BC) vs. Reimer and Gomez (8-1), Schwartz and Wells (BC) vs. Cardenas and Torres (8-4), and Berdon and Austin Lux (BC) vs. Tovar and Delamora (8-1).

The BC women improved their record to 2-0 when they played Reedley at home where they were 7-2.

BC women’s singles winners: Tucker (BC) vs. Aly Honore (6-3,6-3), Defrees (BC) vs. Briana Vasquez (6-0,6-0), Cisneros (BC) vs. Ann Marie Fernandez (6-1,6-1), and Hannah Moreno (BC) by default.

BC women’s doubles winners: Tucker and Aguilar (BC) vs. Honore and Sanchez (8-3), Defrees and Cisneros (BC) vs. Araki and Vasquez (8-2), and Guillen and Moreno (BC) by default.

The men will be traveling to Saddleback College on Feb. 5 and Fullerton College on Feb. 6 to compete.

They will also be traveling to Modesto for the Modesto Tournament on Feb. 12-13. The men will have a home match against Imperial Valley College on Feb. 11, and will have another home match against Glendale College on Feb. 16.

The women will travel to College of the Sequoias on Feb. 9, Fullerton College on Feb. 11, and Glendale College on Feb. 16.

The women will have a home match against Imperial Valley College on Feb. 13.

[Photos by Mason J. Rockfellow, Joe Bergman, and Marcus Castro]