Trojans tough for Gaytan-Leach

FOUNTAIN VALLEY — Cierra Gaytan-Leach, a rising junior at Corona del Mar High, was 1-1 Saturday against two girls bound for the University of Southern California this fall in the 105th Annual Southern California Junior Sectional Championships.

And while her family consists mostly of Trojans, the school some refer to as the “University of Spoiled Children” is not exactly high on the list of colleges Gaytan-Leach plans to see when she makes her round of unofficial visits this summer.

“I’m not really that fond of it, but who knows, maybe I’ll go there and check it out,” Gaytan-Leach said.

In the girls’ 18s singles division, Gaytan-Leach defeated No. 4-seeded Lyndsay Kinstler 6-7, 6-1, 6-2 in the Round of 16 Saturday morning before falling 6-2, 6-4 to No. 6-seeded Leyla Entekhabi in the afternoon quarterfinal.

Gaytan-Leach, 15, was down 2-5 in the first set of the first match, then battled back for a 6-5 lead before losing the set 6-7 in the tie-breaker.

“I got a little tight and a little nervous and I lost that. On tie-breaker, I just wasn’t playing my game, so I lost,” Gaytan-Leach said. “On the second two sets I was still tight, but I just worked through it better. She’s a good player.”

The second match didn’t go as well, which left Gaytan-Leach hitting her shoe with her racquet in frustration when she missed a return.

From the Round of 64, she won four matches before losing to Entekhabi.

“It’s good experience,” she said. “I like playing against players that are better than me and will give me a tough fight. It makes me better.”

Gaytan-Leach, who is No. 1 in the nation in girls’ 16 doubles with partner Tayler Davis, will return to CdM in the fall, but said she would not play on the tennis team this year, but she would play golf. Last year, Gaytan-Leach was a member of the Sea Kings’ tennis and golf teams.

Both won league titles. The CdM girls’ tennis team went undefeated and won the CIF Southern Section Division I championship.

“It’s totally different. High school is more like a fun thing,” Gaytan-Leach said. “You don’t really play like it’s a competition. There’s nothing on the line. It just for your team, because you want to help your team out. This year we had a great team, and I’m glad I did it.”

She’ll travel to Texas and Kansas this summer and visit schools while she’s there, and she also said she was interested in Arizona State.

Gaytan-Leach was spent after the arduous first match, and she was panting as she talked following the second one.

“It was a long day,” she said. “I took one Trojan down, but couldn’t take the other one down. But it was a good day, and I’m proud of myself.”

SORAYA NADIA McDONALD may be reached at (714) 966-4613 or at soraya.mcdonald@latimes.com.