Palomar College is in the unfortunate position of having to play out the 2016 season without fielding a women’s team.

A collegiate tennis squad must normally have six players to outfit for matches. With only one player available on the roster, the team had no choice but to forfeit their season.

The Comets have a proudpast involving women’s tennis, having won six conference championships since 2005. In 2013, they swept the field in the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference, finishing undefeated in league play to become back-to-back PCAC champions.

During the 2015 season, the team only had four players yet was still able to compete in many events. Unfortunately, dropping down to the solo athlete this season was too much to overcome, and the school had to inform other members of the conference that Palomar would be unable to put out a competitive team.

Speaking with Palomar Athletic Director Scott Cathcart, it was made clear that the lack of a women’s tennis team is an issue that needs to be addressed and acknowledged that while there are certain academic requirements that need to be met to qualify for athletic eligibility, steps were being taken to ensure that Palomar is prepared for 2017. “We fully expect to field a women’s team next year…it’s very important to us,” Cathcart said.

Cathcart also stressed that the team is looking for collegiate-caliber tennis players, capable of playing at a high level of competition.  One step that Palomar has taken to ensure next year’s success is adding a new asisstant coach, Rosanna Chatman, to head coach Ronnie Mancao’s staff.

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