Stepping up to the line, championship in sight, David Joseph bounces the ball twice, serves, and rallies back and forth with many grueling shots until he wins the point. “Game, set and match for David Joseph!” Gasping for air, he goes up to shake his opponent’s hand as the crowd goes crazy cheering for him.
David’s relationship with tennis started at a young age in the second grade. Picking up the game early in his life, his skill slowly progressed going into middle school. His passion for the sport grew and was determined to get better when he was cut from his middle school team. “Looking at the top players, hitting with great form, I knew I wanted to reach that level,” he expresses. Putting in hard work and daily training, he started assessing his game, turning weaknesses into strengths.
Being a thriving player all 4 years on our San Mateo team, David Joseph has truly made his mark on the tennis court. Starting as an underclassman playing doubles 3, his main goal was to learn as much as possible from the Varsity players in hope of becoming one of them one day. As a Junior, he fulfilled his dream of being a top player leading the way in singles. Currently, A senior, DJ is our San Mateo team captain and is a mentor to all young players. “I started to work with Coaches and other players to build lineups that make the strongest team possible,” he comments.
Coach John, SMHS boys tennis coach for over 20 years comments on David’s character on and off the court. “David is a player who every coach would want on their team seen helping lower level players without instruction and exuding confidence on and off the court that is infectious throughout the team.” Seen as a positive and accountable leader, David has been a role model not only to our tennis team but to all our SMHS student-athletes as well.
Joseph has learned many valuable lessons as well as creating many lifelong friendships and memories with his teammates. “ My favorite moment on the tennis team was becoming 2023 Champs of the PAL division and making CCS,” says David reflecting on his high school career. Looking ahead, he has decided to further his education at the University of Santa Cruz majoring in electrical engineering. Whatever the future holds for David Joseph, his presence on and off the tennis court will be missed, but not forgotten.