Several Pirates heading to Regionals
COSTA MESA -- There will be plenty of Pirates at the next level of the postseason after several strong performances at this year's Orange Empire Conference Tournament on Thursday at Friday at the OCC Tennis Center.
Four OCC standouts -- Mebuki Kitakuni, Kaylee Ho, Chantel Kamel and Ava Bocek -- picked up qualifying wins over the past two days to earn at spot at 2026 3C2A Women's Tennis Individuals State Championships, which take place April 23-26 at the Ojai Tennis Center. Kitakuni was the No. 1 seed out of the OEC and needed just one win to quality, which she earned, 6-0, 6-0 against Rio Hondo's Bethany Rosas.
No. 5-seeded Kamel earned a spot in the qualifier finals with a 6-0, 6-0 win, then, topped Fullerton College's Destiny Lopez, 6-3, 6-1, to earn the qualifier spot.
At No. 3, Ho earned a first-round bye before topping Riverside's Fleurdeliz Libutan, 6-2, 6-1.
Last but not least, No. 7 Bosek played two solid matches, dropping just two games total, winning her first-round match, 6-1, 6-0 before rolling to a 6-0, 6-0 win in the qualifier match.
For doubles play, the Pirates again earned plenty of spots in the state tourney. Kitakuni/Ho automatically earned an Ojai invitation as the No. 1 seed out of the OEC. Fourth-seeded Kamel/Bocek won their qualifier match with an 8-1 victory, the same winning score as OCC's No. 8 seeded duo of Minami Saito/Amanda Montanez.
