High School Female Athlete of the Week: Hannah Jervis enjoying role back in singles for CdM tennis
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Corona del Mar High junior Hannah Jervis could see herself studying architecture one day.
Jervis admits she’s not the best at drawing, but she has several applications on her phone where she can design houses and other buildings.
It should come as no surprise, then, that Jervis has been a steady building block for the CdM girls’ tennis team this season.
Jervis mostly played doubles with fellow junior Reece Kenerson last year as a sophomore, after transferring from Mater Dei. She had lots of fun with her longtime friend, who she said she met in a clinic at the Newport Beach Tennis Club at about age 6. Jervis and Kenerson finished second in the Surf League individuals doubles tournament to teammates Kristina Evloeva and Roxy MacKenzie, and advanced to the CIF Southern Section Individuals round of 32.
But Evloeva and MacKenzie both graduated from the Sea Kings’ singles lineup and went to UC Davis and Butler University, respectively. No. 2 singles player Janie Marcus also graduated and now plays at Pomona-Pitzer.
Jervis was cast into singles this season, a scary place to be with the nonleague schedule that coach Jamie Gresh puts together every year.
“I was a little nervous, just because I know at a lot of other schools the singles players are really good,” Jervis said. “But it’s been really fun so far. I’m really excited, how much I’ve grown from last year to this year.”
She has more than held her own.
Jervis entered this week with an 18-9 singles record for CdM (7-5), ranked No. 8 in CIF Southern Section Division 1. Last week she went a combined 7-1 in singles as the Sea Kings earned three wins. They started out Sunset Conference play with a 15-3 crossover match win at Marina on Sept. 24, then beat Beckman 14-4 in a nonleague match the following day. The Sea Kings then ended the week with a 15-3 home win against Edison on Sept. 26.
Jervis may not be on the level of the three singles graduates, at least not yet, but she has shown a willingness to improve. It’s not like she’s never played singles before. At Mater Dei as a freshman, she made the semifinals of the Trinity League singles tournament.
“She’s provided some good wins and has been competing really well lately,” Gresh said. “Hannah’s mostly based on making a lot of balls, being a good athlete. She moves well. Even some of the sets she loses, she always makes her opponents beat her and bring the action to her. To beat Hannah, you have to play aggressive and you have to be accurate and execute.
“Hannah makes players earn their wins against her. She hangs in there and plays very steady from the baseline, but she’s also started to do a little bit more with the ball, take a little bit more risk and get some more rewards with attacking.”
CdM, which won the Division 1 title two years ago, advanced to the Open Division semifinals last year. The Sea Kings could find themselves again in the Open Division if the top eight teams from Division 1 are selected, though last year, only six made the cut.
“I’d rather swim with the sharks,” Gresh said. “I want to be in the Open Division, for sure. I always want to play the best competition possible. That’s how you improve, by playing the better teams.”
The Sea Kings don’t necessarily have a shark, a stud singles player like Evloeva or former standout Danielle Willson (USC) this season. Kenerson has also played some singles for CdM, as have sophomores Kristina Veskovic and Jane Paulsen, junior Alden Mulroy and senior Ella Jacobs.
I was a little nervous, just because I know at a lot of other schools the singles players are really good. But it’s been really fun so far. I’m really excited, how much I’ve grown from last year to this year.
— Hannah Jervis, Corona del Mar junior
CdM lost four straight matches earlier this year — to Studio City Campbell Hall (currently ranked No. 6 in Division 1), as well as No. 4 Palos Verdes, No. 3 Manhattan Beach Mira Costa and No. 1 University. Through some tough matches, Jervis said the team has gotten closer.
“I feel like we appreciate more every match,” Jervis said. “We know that each match that we win, we have to work really hard for it. Last year, you kind of just expected all three singles players to win 6-0 or 6-2, easily. This year, the matches that we win have usually been pretty close. I feel like it really has strengthened a lot of our team spirit, because we have to really support everyone. If it’s going to be really close, they need everything they can get.”
Jervis appreciates rooting for her teammates, and they have had reason to reciprocate. She rallied from a 1-5 deficit to beat University’s Kamya Nair 7-5 in the teams’ nonleague match. And Jervis also picked up two big singles wins against No. 2-ranked Rolling Hills Estates Peninsula on Sept. 19, though the Sea Kings lost the match 10-8.
Jervis stays busy, as she is involved in the PAL and Youth and Government clubs on campus. Her course load this year includes Advanced Placement classes in U.S. history, language, psychology and calculus. She said she could see herself playing college tennis, at least at the club level, depending on where she goes.
“I’m taking a lot of hard classes this year, and if I manage to get A’s in them, then I think I’ll be in a pretty good spot,” she said. “This year is a really big year for me, academic-wise.”
The tennis hasn’t been so bad, either.
Hannah Jervis
Born: Jan. 21, 2003
Hometown: Newport Beach
Height: 5 feet 8
Sport: Tennis
Year: Junior
Coach: Jamie Gresh
Favorite food: Sloppy joes
Favorite movie: “The Longest Ride”
Favorite athletic moment: Upsetting Elizabeth Bondy of Santa Margarita in the Trinity League singles tournament quarterfinals as a freshman.
Week in review: Jervis went a combined 7-1 in singles to help CdM pick up Sunset Conference crossover match wins against Marina and Edison, plus a nonleague victory over Beckman.
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