GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) -The Gridley High School boys tennis team will begin match play this week and will host its first of the year against Colusa on February 24.

The team features four returning players in Jeremy Longmire, Spencer Davis, Cole Leishman and Ryan Woolery as well as newcomers Taylor Johnson, Eric Ramirez, Cesar Ortiz and Juan Diego Avelar.

The team is on the rebound after a rough season last year. New Varsity Head Coach Bob Moffitt tells the Herald he is excited by the talent level he has seen so far.

“This team is full of young men with athletic ability and solid work ethics. I have been tremendously pleased and impressed with their effort and their attitude,” Moffitt says

Six of the eight players recently finished playing football for a squad that went 4-2 in league play. 

And though they have been involved in a winning culture, wins and losses are not part of the discussion for this tennis team, on strict orders of Coach Moffitt.

“Worrying about winning can only lead to thoughts about the outcome instead of the task at hand,” Moffitt says. “It actually increases the chance of losing. Our goals are to improve every day, to play hard, to be good sportsmen and let the chips fall where they may. We will take our lumps in the early going, I am sure. But we will learn from those experiences and I am confident we will be in a solid position to surprise some schools by the time playoffs roll around.”

Moffitt is an English teacher at the high school. He has been a coach in multiple sports within the Yuba Sutter area for a dozen years. He began his coaching career 20 years ago at Sparks High School as a junior varsity baseball coach. 

His assistant coach, Emily Morgan, returns for a second season in that capacity. She played tennis for GHS in 2012 and 2013.

“I love tennis,” Morgan says. “It’s amazing to see both experienced and brand-new players with such a strong desire to learn and grow as athletes. That desire is really pushing them along quite quickly.”

Morgan is also involved with the school assisting the theater department.

The Bulldogs play in the Butte Valley League. They will play Las Plumas, Paradise Adventist, Corning, Orland, and Oroville twice each from now through the third week of April. Gridley had planned to play Wheatland and Sutter in boys tennis this Spring, but neither school managed to field a team. The regular season will end April 19 with Senior Night against Oroville. BVL championship play will commence April 22 at Las PLumas. Northern Section California Interscholastic Federation team playoffs will take place at the end of April and into early May.

“Whether you are a serious or casual fan, this is a great way for you to come out and be a part of your community,” says Moffitt. “Bring your lawn chair and an umbrella and be prepared to support our boys. There isn’t a bad seat in the house!”