Marina boys’ tennis storms into first CIF title match

OAK PARK — Marina High boys’ tennis coach Chuck Kingman gave longtime assistant Cam Jones the honor of introducing the Vikings’ lineup on Wednesday.

“He loves public speaking,” Kingman said facetiously before Marina played at Oak Park in the semifinals of the CIF Southern Section Division 1 playoffs.

There was a good reason for the honor: Jones was celebrating his 79th birthday on Wednesday.

The Vikings’ season has also transformed into something that might be decades in the making.

Marina rallied for an 11-7 victory, advancing to its first CIF title match in program history.

The Sunset League runner-up Vikings (16-3) will play Woodbridge (20-7), the No. 3 team from the Pacific Coast League, for the Division 1 crown on Friday at 5 p.m. at the University of Redlands.

“We’ve got to prepare, lock in,” Marina senior Trevor Nguyen said. “We’re really excited for this opportunity.”

David Tran of Marina, shown earlier this season against CdM, won twice in doubles with partner Joseph Le on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Nguyen, Alejandro Hill and DJ Buckfeller combined to win eight of nine singles sets against Oak Park (15-1), which was undefeated heading into Wednesday’s tilt. Nguyen’s 6-4 win over Eagles senior captain Austin Lamy loomed large in the first round, with several Oak Park supporters watching and cheering just south of the court.

“Just the nerves of this opportunity that we’re in, the semifinals, I was kind of nervous,” Nguyen said. “I was like, what if I lose? I was playing tentative, but it changed a lot.”

What changed was Lamy’s health. With Nguyen up 5-4, he drew Lamy into the net with a drop shot, then hit a lob over his head. Lamy went back to retrieve the ball and attempted a between-the-legs shot, but tripped and ended up injuring his hip.

He gamely continued to play with a pronounced limp but lost to Nguyen, then retired early in his second set against Buckfeller.

Marina, down 4-2 after the first round, took advantage. The Vikings won five of six sets in the second round to grab a 7-5 edge.

Two doubles tiebreakers, the final sets of the round to complete, proved huge. Marina’s No. 1 team of seniors Justin Nguyen and Darren Le beat Oak Park’s Jaivin Phabiani and Ayush Kodur, while the No. 3 tandem of juniors David Tran and Joseph Le topped Levi Jefferson and Angus Rein.

Marina’s Alejandro Hill, shown earlier this season against CdM, won twice in singles on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Players from both teams stood on the vacant No. 2 doubles court, turning their bodies back and forth to cheer on both matches simultaneously.

“My mind was like, our winning [as a team] is going to ride on this one,” Darren Le said. “I felt like it was a pretty important match. I treated it like that, didn’t let the noise get to my head too bad.”

Both tiebreaker scores were the same, 7-4, giving the Vikings a much-needed boost over the Coastal Canyon League champion Eagles headed into the final round of play.

“Those tiebreakers were huge,” Kingman said. “I mean, that was really a turning point for our doubles today. Having those two wins provided us with a little bit more of a cushion. Our doubles has kind of struggled throughout the year, but they really came through today. They got the wins that we needed.”

After Trevor Nguyen and Hill breezed to 6-0 wins in the final round, the Vikings had nine sets, plus a big enough games advantage to know that they were through to the title match.

Kingman said his team seems to be peaking at the right time. There’s just one more match to win for further team history, after Trevor Nguyen and Tran have set individual history by winning the CIF Individuals title last year and earning Ojai Tournament finalist accolades this year.

“It’s a special group of guys, not just talent-wise,” Kingman said. “This is a great group of young men.”