Los Banos' Barcellos raised tennis game

LOS BANOS -- Alexis Barcellos knew she needed to get out of her comfort zone in her sophomore season.

A 6-0, 6-0 loss to Yolo-Davis' Ines Guinard in the first round of last year's Sac-Joaquin Section Division individual tournament taught her that.

Still, change is always easier in theory than in execution.

"I just like sitting back and rallying with my opponent, but when you play better people you have to hit winners," Barcellos said. "That's what I really worked on this year, going for the winner instead of waiting for a mistake.

"It was hard. Sometimes I'd forget to do it in a match, but my mom was always there to remind me."

Tumultuous as the transition may have been, it produced the desired effect.

Barcellos used her new court aggression to lead the Los Banos tennis team to a conference title in its first season in the Western Athletic Conference.

She finished second in an epic WAC singles tournament final and turned in an impressive showing in the Division II singles tournament.

Barcellos exited in the first round again, but pushed Roseville's Adaugo Ukaegbu 6-3, 6-3, with 11 of the games going to deuce. Ukaegbu went on to finish as the section runner-up and it was only Barcellos' third loss of the season.

All of that earned Barcellos the Sun-Star Girls Tennis Player of the Year for the second straight season.

"(Alexis) really improved a lot from her freshman year," Los Banos coach and Barcellos' mom Lyn Barcellos said. "As a coach it was really nice to see her playing a more aggressive style and kind of taking that next step in her development.

"It wasn't always easy, but I think she learned last year how essential it was."

The more aggressive approach proved just that as Barcellos fought for the singles title that had eluded her a year before.

She didn't really make a contest of the Central California Conference singles title match a year ago, falling 6-2,6-1 to Turlock's Elise Cusenza.

Barcellos wasn't about to go out as easily in this year's WAC title match Ceres' Marifer Ochoa.

The club doubles partners had split their two regular-season matches and the third meeting proved to be the best installment.

Ochoa quickly took a 3-0 lead before Barcellos fought her way back.

"She knew everything I like to do, so it was tough," Barcellos said. "I had to just concentrate on everything I'd worked on in practice, and I was able to get back into the match.

Barcellos took a 5-3 lead, but couldn't finish Ochoa off. She dropped the first set 7-6 (7-4) in a tie breaker.

The second set was just as tight and the result was every bit as painful for Barcellos, falling 7-6 (7-4) again.

"It was a match that could have gone either way," Lynn Barcellos said. "A couple points here and there was all the difference.

"It was a tough loss, but I think it was good for her also. It really got her prepared for the section tournament."