Britney Leon’s 2012 tennis season came to an end at the Division I SJS Section Tournament on Thursday. The reigning Central California Conference singles champion met her match in St. Mary’s High’s Elizabeth Stevens who eliminated the Pride standout in straight sets (2-6, 1-6).

“She was a very accurate and hard hitting, strong player,” Pitman’s head coach Doug Reimers said of Stevens. “They played pretty even; Britney played her very close.”

Although the final score might seem skewed, the first-round match was actually very close. In total, there were eight deuce games —six in the first set and two in the second. Unfortunately for Leon, her opponent got the better of her in those tight situations, claiming seven of the eight deuces.

“Britney stuck to her game plan, hit her angles, hustled, and didn’t make any big mistakes. The other girl just hit a few more points,” Reimers said. “She knew the quality of opponents at the section tournament and knew it was going to be an uphill battle.”

“She played the best tennis I’ve seen her play all year but just didn’t come out on top,” Reimers added. “She had a constant smile on her face though. If she was disappointed she didn’t show it.”