The Paly girls Varsity tennis team remains undefeated after a 5-2 non-league win over cross-town rival Gunn Wednesday.

Despite a young roster, the Vikings (14-0) easily overtook the Titans, a team largely composed of upperclassmen. The Paly girls’ strong lineup and consistency in shots allowed victories in all but two matches. Going into the match, head coach Andy Harader had high expectations against Gunn (2-7), but felt confident that the girls would play a good match.

“The girls have been playing sensational tennis all season,” Harader said. “But you can’t ever underestimate your archrival.”

No. 1 Paly freshman Janet Liu coasted to a straight set victory over Gunn freshman Allana Booth, 6-1, 6-0, despite dissatisfaction in her performance.

“I wasn’t playing well, and my footwork was off,” Liu said. “But I think my opponent really struggled mentally.”

Freshmen No. 2 singles Emma Marti and No. 4 singles Mira Khanna also cruised through their matches in straight sets. Marti’s strong serves and long rallies pressured Gunn sophomore Constance Wu to make many unforced errors, giving Marti a 6-4, 6-1 victory. M. Khanna had no trouble finishing off Gunn junior Julia Saper 6-0, 6-0.

“My match was really fast,” M. Khanna said. “I think consistency and angled deep shots helped a lot. Getting in my first serve also helped.”

Paly Junior Vrinda Khanna at No. 2 singles battled through a three set tiebreaker against Gunn senior Vera Yu, but was unable to produce a win for Paly. After V. Khanna won the first set, 6-4, opponent Yu began flatter and longer rallies, causing V. Khanna to drop the second set, 1-6. In the third set tiebreaker, V. Khanna’s defense and forehand winners could not compensate for her unforced errors, leading to 6-10 loss.

“She [my opponent] didn’t want to make mistakes,” V. Khanna said. “So she ended up winning points off my mistakes. But overall, I’m quite happy with how the match went.”

Gunn senior Yu was also satisfied with the result of their match.

“The match was a test of endurance near the end,” Yu said. “My opponent was very consistent, and it was a pleasure playing her. It’s always a pleasure playing Paly because Paly has such a tradition for excellence in sports. I have to admit, there were nerves going in, but you just have to shake them off.”

Paly sophomore No. 1 doubles team Gracie Dulik and Sophie Biffar downed Gunn seniors Sarah Kaubisch and Emilie Seubert, 6-0, 6-2. Though Dulik and Biffar admitted to not having played their best, the pair’s strong defense and aggressive net play made for an easy victory.

“My footwork was off,” Dulik said. “It was really windy and leaves were all over the court. But my serve was good. Though, I wasn’t playing my best and I don’t think Sophie was either.”

Paly junior Lindsay Yang and sophomore Christine Koepnick held consistent defense and out-rallied sophomore Holly Xiao and junior Yvonne Yeh of Gunn at No. 2 doubles.

“Putting a top spin [on the ball] worked well because then our opponent would return with short volleys,” Koepnick said. “Then Lindsay could put it away easily.”

In the longest match of the day, Paly junior Lisa Ke and freshman Emily Efland fought through a third set tiebreaker against Gunn juniors Christine Juang and Monica Chu at number three doubles. After getting off to a slow start in the first set, Ke and Efland played more aggressively in the second set. In the third set, Juang and Chu began to come up into the net, making it difficult for Ke and Efland. After two and a half hours of play, Ke and Efland suffered a close loss, 4-6, 6-3, 7-10.

In another three-set match, freshmen Lauren Mah & Margo Gerould outlasted senior Kumar Anupama and junior Viktoria Tsukanov of Gunn in their exhibition match. Winners from Anupama and Tsukanov early in the match forced Mah and Gerould to change tactics. As the match progressed, Mah and Gerould were able to read their opponent’s game better, allowing them to make more solid returns.

“It was a good, solid match,” Gerould said, “and we were good at keeping our morale positive.”

As for going undefeated all season, Harader is optimistic after the girls won the Paly Invitational tournament on Saturday.

“I didn’t think we would win the tournament on Saturday because we were missing a lot of players,” Harader said. “But the girls were competitive in play and were all confident out there.”

The Lady Vikes’ next match is at Cupertino on Thursday.