Boys' tennis: Wellman plays his best when the pressure's on

You might think Jimmy Wellman would be out celebrating after clinching Taft's second consecutive City Section title, but the Toreadors' sophomore had other plans.

"I'm going right to work on the ball machine," he said. "I need all the practice I can get."

Wellman lost his first three singles sets on Friday, but he'll remember the one he did win for the rest of his life. Having failed to convert three championship points at 5-4, he saved three championship points in the 12th game, then won the  tiebreaker over Palisades' Trinity Thornton to score the last point Taft needed to repeat.   

He's not an emotional kid. In fact, Wellman is known for keeping his cool, even when he breaks a string as he did while warming up for his third set Friday. In fact, he has becoming the Toreadors' version of "Mr. Clutch."

As a freshman, Wellman played as if he had ice water in his veins. He won three singles sets to spark Taft's semifinal upset of West Valley League rival Granada Hills, then won three more against Palisades in the City finals last spring. He seems to thrive under pressure.

"Today it seemed like everyone was doing their job except me," he said. "So it's kind of ironic that I ended up winning it for us." 

-- Steve Galluzzo