Portola, led by sophomore tennis star Kenzie Nguyen, looks for another big season

Portola’s Kenzie Nguyen (left) with Coach Natasha Schottland after winning the CIF individual title. (Photo courtesy Portola athletics).

Portola High School’s girls tennis team, led by sophomore standout Kenzie Nguyen is looking for another big season.

Nguyen had a big 2022 season winning the CIF individual title, the first for the school. Portola, led by Coach Natasha Schottland, is one of the teams listed in the CIF pre-season watch list for Division 1.

The Bulldogs shared the league title with University last year.

“Last year she (Nguyen) dominated the league earning the top seed in the PCL league finals, became league champion and moved into CIF individuals. She eventually defeated Marina High’s Mika Ikemori in the finals to claim the first CIF Individual title for Portola,” Schottland said.

“Kenzie, a five-star blue chip (player) continues to dominate outside of high school tennis as she is currently ranked 458 for juniors (ITF) and recently won a J60 in Vietnam, defeating the number six seed. Her impressive record in season, 38-0, earned her Southern California’s high school female most valuable player at the All-American Awards ceremony and she returns with high hopes to claim another title for herself and her team.”

A number of other players are expected to make big contributions for Portola.

“Both Kenzie and her twin sister, Kylie, will be rejoining the team, along with senior captain Victoria Sarabosing, junior captain Leanna Roman and several up and coming freshmen including Jiah Lee and Payton Nguyen,” Schottland said.

“The team’s goals for this season are to capture the prestigious PCL title along with making a deep run in team CIF playoffs. They hope to qualify for SoCal Team Regionals and eventually compete at the state level, a first for high school tennis.”

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com