Trailing 5-1 in the second set, Warrior tennis player Lindsay Guardado knew she had to turn the tables to force Mt. San Antonio College’s No. 1 player Jourdan Jefferson into a third and final set.

Despite the lack of practice due to rain and with a bruised ego after a 6-1 loss in the first set, Guardado responded with a furious rally; scoring three straight points to come within a point of tying the set, 5-4.

“The first time I played her she was injured and we went to a third set,” Guardado said. “It was a really close game, but it kind of brought my self esteem down when I (lost to) her.”

With the pressure of facing the No.1 team in the conference and momentum on her side, Guardado adamantly swung to cap what appeared to be a sure comeback. 

Gaurdado connected on nothing but air, and could only watch as the ball and her chances bounced away.

With one last opportunity to tie she whiffed again, and just like that, the match was over, 6-4, giving the Warriors a 7-2 loss last Thursday at Mt. SAC.

“It was just a bad game,” Guardado said. “I had the mentality already that I was going to lose.”

It was the third and final match of the season against Mt. SAC; the Mounties swept the season series, 3-0.

“Mt. SAC’s No.1 (player) was a very strong hitter but I think Lindsay came out strong too,” assistant coach Teila Robertson said. “She did really well moving her around the court, I was really happy with her performance.” 

Later that evening Guardado teamed up with Carolina Mendoza in a doubles match that gave the Warriors a second loss. 

“They were just way more competitive, they would attack both and we would just sit there and watch,” Guardado said. “Not that we were lazy but we went by really quickly, it was like a 20 minute game.”

The only two points of the match for the Warriors came from Jillian Dineros and Ashley Bell. 

Bell, one of three returning players on the team, won her singles match, 6-0, 6-2.

“Mt. SAC is usually really hard to beat in general,” Bell said. “We wanted to win but in the end they were just better.”

It was the team’s fifth loss of the season, snapping its three-game winning streak, a season-high.

Next Thursday the team will test its skills at the SCC conference tournament, in which Bell hopes to give a good performance.

Guardado is also confident in her skills but is aware of her opponents’ as well.

“My record is pretty good, I have a chance at getting far,” Guardado said. “I don’t know about taking it all because there are a lot of more competitive people out there.” 

Meanwhile her teammates continue to support her effort.

The team ended the season second in their conference, with Mt. SAC taking the first place.

“From the beginning of the season we started off a little bit slow,” Robertson said. “They just kept being consistent and working on their shots and they just got better with every game.”