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  • Katie Ta went 44-1, captured her third consecutive league championship...

    Katie Ta went 44-1, captured her third consecutive league championship and reached the semifinals at the CIF Individuals this season. Ta is the Register's 2014 girls tennis player of the year.

  • Katie Ta of Capistrano Valley has been selected the Register's...

    Katie Ta of Capistrano Valley has been selected the Register's player of the year for 2014.

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Associate mug of Kenny Connolly, Anaheim reporter.

Date shot: 12/31/2012 . Photo by KATE LUCAS /  ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The Capistrano Valley High tennis courts have become a sort of home away from home for Katie Ta.

At 10 years old, Ta was introduced to the courts when she tagged along with her parents to watch her older brother, Matthew, compete for the Cougars boys team.

Those trips became even more common when her older sister, Ashley, also enrolled at Capo Valley and began playing for the girls squad.

Terri Machado – the Cougars’ boys and girls tennis coach – always noticed the youngest Ta attentively taking in the matches from the bleachers.

Machado also knew Katie played. Having coached her two talented siblings, Machado figured the youngster had an opportunity to excel when it was her time to play at Capo.

“I always knew Katie was going to be a special player,” the ninth-year coach said. “She always had such a great passion for the game, even when she was here watching her brother and sister as a kid.”

Having now coached Katie the past four seasons, Machado’s instincts have proved to be dead on.

In her illustrious career at Capistrano Valley, Ta has been named team MVP four times and claimed three straight individual league titles in singles.

For the second consecutive year, Ta has also been recognized as the Register’s player of the year.

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2014 ALL-COUNTY GIRLS TENNIS:

2014 All-County girls tennis team

Valencia’s McCall is 2014 girls tennis coach of the year

2014 All-County girls tennis: second, third teams

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“I’ve been going to matches (at Capo) since my brother and sister were playing here,” Ta explained. “To think I don’t have to go back again is surreal. I’m excited to be playing in college, but I’m going to miss the girls here that I played with. It’s bittersweet.”

In August, Ta will move to Rhode Island and continue her playing career at Brown University, one of the many Ivy League schools that recruited the Capo Valley star.

Nationally ranked 42nd amongst all high school seniors – good enough for sixth in the state – Ta finished the 2014 campaign with a 44-1 overall record. For the second consecutive season, she advanced to the semifinals of the CIF Individuals where she was knocked out by Palos Verdes Peninsula’s Ena Shibahara, 6-2, 7-6 (2), who went on to win her second consecutive CIF crown.

“Last year I was really surprised I made it that far,” Ta acknowledged. “I was nervous about this year because I didn’t think I’d make it that far again. It was a lot tougher, but I was really happy with how I performed.”

Ta posed the greatest threat to Shibahara, who did not drop a set all season. A few more breaks in the second set of their semifinals match, and who knows what might have happened in a decisive third set.

Ta isn’t bothered by it. She has her mind focused on what’s to come.

In her immediate future are a pair of matches over the holiday break against two of her biggest rivals – big brother and big sister.

“Whenever they come back from college, it gets super competitive,” Ta laughed. “When I was younger, they used to beat me because I was so much smaller and I always would get really mad.

“We’ll see how it goes when they’re both home over the break this year.”

Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com