Central Valley's varsity girls tennis team played host to crosstown-rival Ceres High on Oct. 4.

The Hawks edged the Bulldogs 5-4 for the second time this season in Western Athletic Conference play.

"I figured it would be a close match again," Hawks head coach Mike Rodriguez said. "It came down to No. 1 doubles. We squeaked it out."

Central Valley (4-6) beat Ceres High, Livingston and Pacheco en route to compiling a 3-2 record during the second round of the WAC season.

The Hawks lost to Los Banos, Patterson, Livingston and Pacheco while dropping four of five matches the first round of conference play.

"There's been a ton of improvement," Rodriguez said. "The doubles have been a real strength for us this year. Our singles players are getting better. I'm not surprised. They just needed match experience. There's still a lot of season left. We kept our hopes of going to playoffs alive."

Abigail Martinez and Daniela Yepez helped Central Valley secure the narrow team victory this past week by defeating Ceres High's Sarah Cuevas and Morgan Bejaran 7-6 (13-11), 4-6, 6-2 in No. 1 doubles play.

Martinez and Yepez battled back from a 6-3 deficit during the first-set tiebreaker.

"It's the first time they've been in this position," Rodriguez said. "We were pretty confident they'd be able to get the job done. They've had good success all year. They've won the majority of their matches. They're competitive. That comes from soccer."

Central Valley's Yesinia Bernal-Lareos and Elisabeth Valdez defeated Ceres High's Camille Vega and Harman Bahia 6-2, 6-3 in No. 2 doubles play.

Central Valley's Jocelyn Rodriguez and Nayeli Castellanos defeated Ceres High's Ariel Coria and Kayla Sierras 6-1, 6-3 in No. 3 doubles play.

The Hawks won just two of their six singles matches versus the Bulldogs.

Claudia Martinez defeated Andria Esho 6-1, 6-4 in No. 1 singles play.

Lupe Becerra defeated Dominique Koeurn 6-4, 6-4 in No. 2 singles play.

Adriana Escobedo lost 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 to Azia Brewster in No. 3 singles play.

Sue Dhillon lost 6-1, 6-1 to Vivian Moreno in No. 4 singles play.

Gianna Arce lost 6-1, 6-2 to Bella Rosas in No. 5 singles play.

Mixtly Vega lost 6-0, 4-6, 6-0 to Shania Evans in No. 6 singles play.

Central Valley improved its all-time record versus Ceres High to 7-15.

The Hawks have won the last seven meetings dating back to the 2013 season.

"All of the matches have been pretty close," Rodriguez said.