The coach, who had mentored two of Voorhis’ older sisters, was helping instruct a clinic at the Alisal Guest Ranch when she first got a look at the youngest member of the family. Rasmussen said she and Voorhis crossed paths several times in those early years, and she usually had the same question for her.
“I’d ask, ‘When are you getting to high school?’ and she’d say, ‘A couple more years,’” the coach recalled with a laugh. “I always thought she was older than she was, so I ended up having to wait even longer than I thought.” When that wait finally ended, Voorhis didn’t disappoint. She made it on the varsity squad her freshman season, and, now a senior co-captain, is looking for a strong finish to her high school career. She and fellow senior co-captain Kat Rocha, the Pirates’ top two singles players, have helped lead the young team to a fast start to the 2012 season, both with their play and leadership on the court and off it.
“They know what the expectations are, and the procedures and everything, and they’re good role models in that way,” Rasmussen said of her senior leaders.
While the two share a lot of common attributes within their games, their paths to this point were anything but. Voorhis started playing tennis at a young age, thanks to her older siblings and parents all taking part in the sport. “We were always on the court,” she said.
She started getting serious while still in elementary school and began taking lessons and attending clinics in those years. Her older sisters also took dancing classes along with tennis, so Katie said she gave that a try as well, “but I quit to focus on tennis.”
“Plus, I was a lot better at tennis,” she added with a laugh.
Although Voorhis doesn’t rate her dancing skills very highly, she said that the experience has helped her on the tennis court.
“My dad kind of makes fun of me for it, because I just kind of glide around the court,” she said. “I guess dance helped me with that: I don’t run – I just kind of skate.”
She started off as a substitute with the Pirates in her freshman year, but was a consistent player in singles. “I was pretty intimidated because all the other girls were so good, but I was like, ‘if (Rasmussen) put me here, she must see a lot of potential in me to get better,’” she said of that first season. “I was good, but I knew if I was going to be playing with them I would have to step it up, so I did.”
In her sophomore year, Rocha joined the team and made it on the varsity roster despite never really playing tennis previously. Rocha, whose primary sport is soccer, had played volleyball as a freshman, but decided to give tennis a try when volleyball began conflicting with her soccer schedule.
“I loved it,” she said of her first season on the tennis court. “I fell in love with it, and the team was like a family and I looked up to the older girls and wanted to play like them when I was a senior.”
That team ended up advancing to the CIF finals, where Rocha was a member of a doubles team playing for a CIF championship in her first season.
“It was a whole lot of pressure, but she stuck with it and played really well,” Rasmussen said of Rocha. “That was great to see. I think it really motivated her.”
Rocha agreed with her coach’s latter point.
“It was crazy,” she said. “It was exciting and overwhelming and nerve-racking, and just really awesome. I want the other girls to be able to experience going to a final. I’ll always remember that game, and it’s such a great memory that I want the other girls to be able to feel it.”
Voorhis has a very different memory of that season. She injured her back and was unable to play in the postseason. She said it was difficult staying on the sideline while her teammates chased a title without her.
“I was crushed,” she said. “I just had to sit and watch them go all the way to the championship, and I had worked so hard all offseason, so it was tough. But then I knew for next season how to prepare better and make sure that I didn’t get hurt. It’s all lessons you have to learn, I guess.”
As the only returning players from a year ago, both seniors have taken on a lot of responsibility since being named captains in December. They led the team’s winter and spring conditioning programs and were involved in ordering the team’s uniforms, setting up fundraising efforts and getting everyone ready for their summer camp.
“You never really know how much you have to do until you are a captain,” Voorhis said. “Our team is really young, so we really try to pep them up. It’s basically our job to kind of get them fired-up before matches because they’re all new at it.”
They also still help each other out when warranted.
“We’ve definitely hit a lot together and learned a lot from each other,” Voorhis said. “And we’ve also been friends for a really long time, so that helps.”
Both players list winning their league and advancing deep in CIF as goals for this season. Both also are hoping this season isn’t their last of competitive tennis. Voorhis said she is still considering a few colleges and would like to be able to play tennis on the next level.
“It’s been such a passion of mine, so it would be kind of a bummer to give it up now,” she said, adding that she’ll always play recreationally. “If I can make the team (in college), I’ll definitely play. It’ll be sad if I can’t, but I’ll still have fun.”
Rocha is also still considering schools and she said being able to play soccer is one of her top priorities. “But if I could play tennis too, that would be amazing,” she said. “Who knows?” willis@syvjournal.com