Coach Cabana Clinches 900th Win

Coach Jo Cabana has established her tennis legacy with 27 State Championship titles, five Florida Coach of the Year selections, and induction into the National High School Tennis Coaches Hall of Fame. On October 25th, Coach Cabana added to her already impressive resumé with her 900th win.

The women’s tennis roster for this match included freshman Maddie McWilliams, sophomores Carla Perezgrovas, Nicole Bergman, and Ella Davis, and seniors Charlotte Bergman and Caroline Nelson. The team faced second seed Lake Norman in the third round of the state playoffs. The score was 4-4 and Catholic was down 3 match points. Lake Norman was serving and defeat seemed imminent, but Coach Cabana motivated the team to persevere and ultimately prevail.

Leading up to the state playoffs, Coach Cabana was astonished to discover she had to win only three more matches to get her 900th win. She realized she would achieve this goal if the team made it to the 4th round of the playoffs, and they succeeded. Coach Cabana said that the winning experience was “absolutely unbelievable. It was a big celebration.”

Coach Cabana and her winning team

Reflecting on her years coaching tennis, Mrs. Cabana emphasizes the changes she has made in her coaching style. As the Sports Ethics teacher, she makes sure her team understands the importance of ethics in tennis. She examines her intent and impact as a coach and explains how critical it is to teach young athletes about ethics in sports. Coach Cabana states, “I always tell my team that they need to focus on the things they can control.” She teaches her athletes to focus on their effort, attitude, and sportsmanship. She wants them to maintain a positive attitude through wins and losses, which is a lesson she has learned throughout her coaching career. She believes this coaching mindset helped her achieve her 900th win.

Coach Cabana knows she will never forget this victory, and the women’s tennis team made sure of this by presenting her a plaque commemorating her 900th win. The students who competed at the match signed the tennis ball in the middle of the plaque. She says, “This plaque will make sure that I never forget how my hard-working team helped me get my 900th win.”