All-Region girls tennis: Hannah Gianan

She’s there as a friend, joke with you on changeovers, let you borrow something, praise how well you are playing.

But make no mistake that one of the nicest girls tennis players in the region is out to beat you.

It’s just the social nature of tennis that Camas junior Hannah Gianan embraces. And it works for her.

Through a variety of obstacles during the spring season, Gianan nearly added a third state title to her r?sum? by finishing runner-up at the WIAA Class 4A state singles tournament and earned The Columbian’s All-Region girls tennis player of the year.

“I knew I could take what was going to be thrown at me in the season,” she said.

Along the way Gianan suffered an auto accident injury and then came up short in a three-set 4A district final against Mountain View senior Amila Gogalija for her first defeat of the year. Gianan rolled to a straight sets win in a 4A bi-district playoff the next day to make it to state for the third year in a row where she won three matches in a row in straight sets to reach the final.

A two-time doubles state champion, Gianan rallied from behind to nearly knock off Timberline sophomore Angela Schuster in the singles final, but came up short 2-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4 as Schuster completed an undefeated season.

“I didn’t get what I wanted, but it was a great match,” Gianan said. “Her unforced errors were extremely low for anyone. She wouldn’t give up on any ball, and I really admired that.”

And there is some of that nice-ness.

Gianan said in both her district and state defeats, it was a matter of how her opponents made adjustments to score the victory.

“I was not me changing my game, it was them changing their game and it worked very well for them,” Gianan said. “Amila just enhanced so much more in the second and third sets it was amazing. Angela not giving up on any ball really worked for her.”

Gianan enjoys the state experience because she gets to visit with fellow tennis players she has become friends with through the USTA club season, where she is currently ranked eighth in the Pacific Northwest in the girls 18s age group.

“I’m friends with them, but obviously we are competitors,” Gianan said, adding that one of her good friends is Joyce Park of Gig Harbor, who Gianan beat 6-0, 6-4 in the state semifinal.

Ask any coach who knows Gianan and they’ll say she’s the nicest person they know. Gianan backs that up herself.

“At changeovers, I’ll talk with my friends, make jokes. If someone needs something, I’ll probably have it in my bag,” she said.

Then it’s back to business.

Rest of All-Region girls tennis team

Amila Gogalija, Mountain View

Senior won 4A district title, bi-district playoff to qualify for state, and then placed seventh at state tournament.

Faith Grisham, Columbia River

The freshman won the 3A district title, and then placed third at bi-district to qualify for state.