Senior Leah Baez had tried just about every sport thinkable before entering Riverside Brookfield High School.
“I felt like none of them were quite right. There was always something that I didn’t like,” Baez said.
Then Baez tried tennis. On Monday, she was among seven Bulldogs who were honored on their rescheduled Senior Day for the match against Morton. Baez, Mollie Price, Lucia Rodriguez, Brooke Zavorski and Paige Zavorski have been four-year program members. Sofia Garcia joined as a sophomore and Ella Blomgren as a junior.
After her freshman tennis experience, Baez said she encouraged Garcia to join the following season.
“When I did tennis, I really loved it and I learned how much of a mental game it is,” Baez said. “Of course, there’s physical attributes with running and hitting and all of that stuff but I think the mindset was really big for me. If you change it and keep being positive, you can really pull through in your match no matter how good your opponent is.”
The Zavorski twins have been four-year varsity standouts who have contributed to three straight conference team titles. This season, the Bulldogs are 2-3 in Upstate Eight Conference East Division duals under first-year head coach Elise Husemann. Their final one was against West Chicago Tuesday heading into the UEC East Meet this weekend.
“I like being around my teammates and playing with them and seeing how we grow together,” Price said. “I’ve learned to be more patient with myself because there are times where I’m not getting a shot right or getting my serve in. I’ve learned to be patient and keep practicing until I get it and get better.”
Baez mostly played singles in 2025, but this year often has been at No. 2 doubles with Price. They’ve known each other since they were first-graders at Brook Park School.
“I like the way we mesh together. I kind of feel like everyone is so unique with their personalities, yet we all get along no matter our background or how long we’ve been playing,” Baez said. “Everyone is so nice and caring and coach (Husemann) has been amazing. You can tell she really cares.”
Blomgren has mostly been playing No. 4 doubles. Until last season, she had played tennis casually but was looking for a fall sport.
“I kind of just thought tennis sounded like fun so I tried it out and I ended up really liking it,” Blomgren said. “I think the tennis community has been really positive these past two years. I’ll be sad to see it go. It’s a really positive and encouraging environment.”
Blomgren’s most memorable match came earlier this season at home against Ridgewood. Playing doubles with junior Olivia Gabel, they pulled out a long, tough battle with most of their teammates watching and cheering.
“We were the last match. It was really dark. The (court) lights came on,” Blomgren said. “I think the match went like two and a half hours. It was just a really nice moment because all of that hard work paid off.”
Baez recalled her first quad as a freshman at Morton on the Saturday morning of homecoming. With help from good attitudes, she and her upperclassman doubles teammate rallied to win their final match.
Last season, Price and Baez enjoyed a team bonding day on the clay courts at the Oak Brook Bath and Tennis Club. Price and Baez chose to play doubles against Garcia and Rodriguez. They even saw a wedding taking place at the club while playing.
“It was just a lot of fun playing with everyone. We got to play whatever we wanted,” Price said.
RBHS girls volleyball
After just two home matches previously, the Bulldogs rolled to back-to-back home victories over York 25-23, 23-19, Sept. 30, and Downers Grove South 25-15, 27-25, Oct. 1, after winning at Glenbard East 25-12, 25-18, Sept. 29.
The Bulldogs (16-8, 3-0 in UEC East) have won six straight, all in two sets, heading into Tuesday’s Senior Night against Fenton. The victory over York was especially sweet after losing to the Dukes in regionals the past two seasons.
Mackenzie Sloger (17 kills, .545 attack percentage), Asha Ponnappan (7 total blocks), Elsie Crist (17 assists), Ella Wilkowski (5 kills), Sage Roldan (9 digs), Nina Johnsen (8 digs), Demetra Foster (6 blocks) and Kenley Callahan (2 aces) were among the key contributors.