Daily Pilot High School Female Athlete of the Week: CdM’s Willson ended magical season with individual glory
Corona del Mar High girls’ tennis player Danielle Willson got congratulations from many people after winning the CIF Southern Section Individuals singles championship on Nov. 30.
Some of the most special praise that the senior received came from her boyfriend, Jared Donaldson. Willson went to visit Donaldson and his dad Courtney in Irvine the day after capturing the title.
“His dad was screaming, ‘State champion!’ and Jared was just like screaming and yelling,” Willson said. “He was pretty happy for me.”
Donaldson, 21, probably knows the hard work and dedication that it took Willson to win the title. He’s a professional tennis player currently ranked No. 54 in the world.
“When he wins, obviously it pushes me to work harder, even though I’m not on his level at all,” Willson said. “It’s still encouragement for me. And he gives me some feedback when I need help with something, or just mentally, he’ll give me his advice. It’s pretty cool to have somebody just a text away.”
The level that Willson has achieved is pretty high. After the team captain helped undefeated Corona del Mar win Pacific Coast League, CIF Southern Section Division 1 and CIF USTA Southern California Regional titles, she earned the Southern Section’s top individual award.
The USC-bound Willson was dominant, not dropping a set in six matches on her way to the Individuals title. In the final at Seal Beach Tennis Center, the No. 4-seeded Willson defeated No. 3 Lindsay Hung, from San Clemente, 6-1, 6-3. She became the third player from CdM to top the section in singles, the first since Brittany Reitz in 2000.
As an Individuals finalist, she will have a board recognizing her accomplishment put up at the CdM tennis courts. It won’t be far from the board acknowledging her former coach, Taylor Dent, who won the Individuals singles boys’ title as a freshman in 1996.
“Winning league, CIF, then regionals and Individuals was pretty cool,” said Willson, the Daily Pilot High School Female Athlete of the Week. “It was pretty spectacular. I don’t know. It was really nice to win it like that, especially as a senior, leaving CdM with those titles.
“I think I was really mentally tough out there, and I think that really helped for me to close out the sets. To beat those players in straight sets was an accomplishment for me, especially since some of them are rated higher than me.”
Willson also beat No. 1 Casie Wooten, from Palos Verdes Peninsula Chadwick, in the semifinals, 6-3, 6-1. Her level of play on that final day was extremely high, CdM coach Jamie Gresh said. Her coach felt that Willson was ready to play well in the Individuals tournament after ending the team season well.
“It almost seemed like things were slowed down for her, like some things were in slow motion,” Gresh said. “The ball was looking like a grapefruit, and she could just swing big and hit shots. Everything with her footwork, the way she was just hitting the ball and moving, it was all just playing really high-level, high-percentage, instinctual tennis. Her shot selection was really good the final day, too.”
In beating Hung, Willson avenged a loss in CdM’s nonleague match against San Clemente on Sept. 20. Her serve was broken just once in the rematch, at 2-0 in the first set.
The two players are familiar, as they both train at Advantage Tennis Academy in Irvine. Willson and Hung could play against each other next year in the Pac-12 Conference, as Hung is bound for the University of Utah.
The ball was looking like a grapefruit, and she could just swing big and hit shots.
— Corona del Mar coach Jamie Gresh
Willson definitely made her mark. She finished the year with a 59-4 singles record. She was 4-0 in doubles, leading Gresh to joke that she was better in doubles since she was undefeated.
“Undefeated” was also a word that could describe the Sea Kings. Transfers Annika Bassey and Kristina Evloeva definitely helped out Willson in singles, as did CdM’s deep doubles lineup.
But Willson was the unquestioned No. 1 player, the one who delivered for her team. At the end of the season, she also delivered for herself.
“She didn’t give up any easy errors, while I think she played very aggressive, big-hitting tennis,” Gresh said. “It sounds like an easy formula, but it’s hard to execute that, and she did it very flawlessly.”
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Danielle Willson
Born: Aug. 1, 1999
Hometown: Newport Beach
Height: 5 feet 11
Sport: Tennis
Year: Senior
Coach: Jamie Gresh
Favorite food: Sushi
Favorite movie: “The Gift”
Favorite athletic moment: Winning the CIF Southern Section Individuals singles tournament as a senior.
Week in review: Willson became the third CdM girls’ tennis player to win a CIF Southern Section Individuals singles title after beating San Clemente’s Lindsay Hung 6-1, 6-3 in the title match at Seal Beach Tennis Center on Nov. 30.
Twitter: @mjszabo
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