Winning Is Just a Game for Crisell

Tennis is just a game to Tracy Crisell of Marina High School. But it’s a game she plays very, very well.

Crisell, The Times’ Athlete of the Week, swept her sets, 6-0, 6-1, 6-0, to lead Marina over visiting Newport Harbor Thursday.

“I don’t think tennis dominates her life,” Marina Coach Don Hohl said. “Don’t get me wrong--she loves tennis and practices hard and consistently--but it doesn’t consume her. She’s interested in boys and shopping. She just started driving last year so she’s still vying with her mom for the car.”

Crisell, the returning Sunset League singles champion, was 42-5 last year. And she’s started this season right where she left off.

“We expect Tracy to sweep everything,” Hohl said. “I won’t play her against weaker schools because there’s no point in humiliating the other girl.”

And that’s fine with Crisell.

“Sometimes, it’s harder to play against people who are worse than you,” said Crisell, citing the adjustment she has to make to their strokes.

But Crisell says it’s not as if she’s better than everyone: “It’s like--I don’t remember when it was--the last time I played Jeanette Fylpaa of University, she just killed me. I was up 4-3, and just lost my concentration. She won 6-4.”

Such losses are part of Hohl’s plan to improve Crisell.

“I did schedule a lot of tough (nonleague) matches because it is her senior year,” Hohl said.

Hohl and Crisell credit the refinements in her game to a club-tennis background and strong family ties. Crisell’s older sister, Carrie, is a senior on Pepperdine’s team.

She also has private lessons with Stan Kula at the Lindborg Racquet Club in Huntington Beach.

“He (Kula) really helps out a lot,” Crisell said. “He’s really good at recognizing what’s wrong and correcting it.”

TOP PERFORMERS

Cindy Kuragami swept her sets, 6-0, 6-0, 6-0, to lead Savanna to a 17-1 tennis victory over Garden Grove on Wednesday.

Heather McKinley had 19 kills and 12 aces to help rally El Modena to a 10-15, 16-14, 15-3, 15-4 volleyball victory over Fullerton Tuesday.

Tracy Crisell

Marina High School

Position: No. 1 tennis singles player

Height, Weight, Class: 5-7, 120, Senior

Last Week: Crisell swept her matches, 6-0, 6-1, 6-0, to lead Marina to a 10-8 victory over Newport Harbor.