CHICO — The Chico High girls tennis team’s success in the 2022 season has been centered around its youth, team chemistry and family.
Freshman Kylie Vaughn has made a mark at the No. 2 singles position for the Panthers, going 12-0 and 12-0 overall for a team who many see as the No. 1 team in the Northern Section. One of Vaughn’s biggest wins of the season came Sept. 10 in the finals of the California Classic, Division II, when Vaughn lost the first set of her match to Clovis North 7-5, but battled back to win the second set 6-1 and won the 10-point tiebreaker to win the match. Vaughn’s win was key in the Panthers’ 4-2 victory.
Vaughn’s most recent win came Thursday afternoon against Pleasant Valley’s Maddux Wilson. Due to Vaughn’s success in starting her high school career, she has been named this week’s Chico Enterprise-Record Prep Athlete of the Week.
“It is truly an incredible accomplishment especially for a freshman to beat the level of opponents she has this season,” said Chico High coach Randy Agnew in an email. “Her hard work, competitive fire and mental toughness are huge reasons for her success. When Kylie is on the court she is tough to beat because she so mentally focused and is incredible competitor.”
When Vaughn is on the court, you will have to beat her. She loves her groundstrokes and loves hitting them from the baseline, and isn’t afraid to let her opponent make mistakes. She feels this is key especially when it comes to playing tougher opponents.
“I feel like I set up my shot, wait for my moment and just not make the errors, basically waiting for the right shot, not getting too impatient and then going for it,” Vaughn said. “I like to hit baseline, but I will come up to the net if I have the right shot.”
Vaughn’s serve is consistent, but small in stature she relies more so on her groundstrokes than a big serve. Her favorite shot is her forehand down the line in singles or a passing shot past the player guarding the net in doubles.
“She won’t make a lot of mistakes against you so if you’re going to beat her, you have to earn your points for sure,” Agnew said.
Vaughn’s favorite part of tennis is exactly what occurred in her match on Sept. 10. A player can fall behind and the weight is put on their shoulders, but she can still come out victorious if she is able to push through.
“I am incredibly impressed by her maturity at this age, it’s not every day you see someone with her skill and composure and maturity as a freshman,” Agnew said. “She is extremely composed on the court, rarely ever showing her opponent any sign of weakness.”
When looking back at how she’s been successful so quickly in high school as a freshman, there are several things to look at. Vaughn admits she is very superstitious and that wearing bright-colored socks to each match has been key for the last two years.
Possibly the biggest key to her success is what matters most to Vaughn — her family. Vaughn’s cousin Paige Sittangang, a sophomore at Chico High, is the Panthers’ No. 1 singles player, and Vaughn’s sister Sydney Vaughn is a senior at CHS and the Panthers’ No. 3 singles player. At home, the entire Vaughn family including both parents all play tennis, and Kylie hopes to one day be doing the same.
Vaughn has dreams of one day playing college tennis, but at the moment she is enjoying her high school career in school and on the court.
“I’ve always thought of college tennis as something but I don’t really know yet,” Vaughn said. “Even when I’m older I’ve always wanted to play tennis with my whole family. It’s a sport that even my cousins, we’ve all played. We’re all in it together as a family.”
