NEWPORT HARBOR – The toughest match of the week, oftentimes, took place on the same blue hard court against the same opponent on an afternoon that had been agreed upon.
As staples atop Corona del Mar’s singles lineup, Jasie Dunk and Danielle Willson made quick work of many of the opponents they shared the court with during the season.
So whether it be at a team practice, an impromptu training session, the teammates squared off against one another weekly, fine-tuning their skills while developing a mutually beneficial rivalry.
While clearly different players who had taken different paths to the top of the county landscape, Dunk and Willson shared eerily similar success this fall. Dunk went 40-3, won the the Pacific Coast League singles title, and advanced to the round of 16 at the CIF-SS Individual championships. Willson, went 41-3, was the PCL runner-up, and was one of only three county players to navigate their way to the quarterfinals at CIF Individuals.
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ALL-COUNTY GIRLS TENNIS
- All-County: First-team selections
- Co-players of the year: Corona del Mar’s Jasie Dunk and Danielle Willson
- Coach of the year: Corona del Mar’s Jamie Gresh
- All-County: Second team
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They shared the team MVP honors for top-ranked Corona del Mar, and now Dunk and Willson have also been named Orange County’s co-players of the year by the Register.
“Jasie and Danielle had a good, friendly rivalry,” Sea Kings coach Jamie Gresh said. “They always wanted the best for each other and they were great teammates. That was a massive one-two punch at the top of our lineup.
“They played differently too, so they were able to impose their games on the other top girls, playing very differently styles.”
Trotting out two legitimate No. 1 singles players is largely what separated Corona del Mar from the rest of the county this season. The Sea Kings cruised to a perfect 10-0 clip in Pacific Coast League play for the second consecutive season, earned Division 1’s top overall seed in the playoffs, and spent some time ranked No. 1 in the state by CIF.
As a stalwart in the team’s singles lineup since her freshman campaign, Willson lived up to the lofty expectations she entered the high school ranks with. Against Harvard-Westlake of Studio city in last month’s CIF-SS semifinals, Willson edged out five-star senior Jenna Moustafa – the eventual individual singles runner-up – by a 7-6 score line, arguably the most impressive win turned in by a CdM player this season.
The junior went on to top four-star player Rachelle Yang (Arcadia) and five-star Emilee Duong (Valencia) to advance to the final eight at CIF Individuals.
“Jasie was the one that pushed me to get better on the competitive side,” Willson acknowledged. “We both got better. Even if it was competitive and there was a little rivaly, that’s how it is in tennis. I think it really helped us both get better.”
Unlike Willson, Dunk started her high school career on the doubles side, and split her time between tennis and soccer.
“I was probably terrible compared to what I am now,” she joked. “Sophomore year was my first year ever playing competitive singles. I was basically learning how to play tennis. I upped my training and started playing tournaments the summer after sophomore year.”
After being a relative unknown as a freshman, Dunk worked her way up to a four-star ranking in her senior season. She topped Willson, 8-7, to win the Pacific Coast League singles crown and was recently offered a walk-on spot at Cal, the No. 2-ranked collegiate program in the country.
“It’s just a crazy opportunity for me,” she said. “And it will be cool to follow in my dad (Chris’) footsteps who played their too.”
As for Willson, she will return as the area’s top senior next fall with a list of goals to work toward. At the top of that list will be trying to win an Individual singles crown and a leading the Sea Kings to a CIF-SS team final. CdM has been eliminated from the playoffs in the semifinals for four consecutive seasons.
“I think we’re going to have a deep team,” Willson said. “Obviously losing Jasie is going to be tough, but we’ve got a couple good freshmen coming in. So keeping that in mind, knowing we have backup will help us keep that same goal: getting to the CIF final.”
Contact the writer: kconnolly@scng.com
