Jeff Arons Tennis

Losaline Mafileo
Head Coach, Sacred Heart Prep Varsity Tennis Teams

Mafileo, 29, grew up in East Palo Alto and learned the game of tennis through her involvement with the East Palo Alto Tennis and Tutoring Program (EPATT). She earned a scholarship to attend Pinewood High School (1993-6) where she played #1 singles as a sophomore, junior and senior. Mafileo went on to play #1 singles and doubles at De Anza Junior College where she led her team to a state championship. She then went on to play at Cal Poly Pamona where she competed at the #1 position in both singles and doubles for the Broncos. Mafileo earned her bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Health Promotion. Since the 2003-4 school year, Mafileo has served as the head tennis coach for both the girls’ and boys’ tennis teams at Sacred Heart Prep.

The girls’ tennis program at Sacred Heart Prep has flourished under Mafileo’s leadership. During the 2003 season, the Gators had their best season in school history finishing in fourth place in the perennially tough Western Catholic Athletic League (WCAL). The 2004 season was even more impressive as Mafileo guided the lady Gators to the top of the WCAL where Sacred Heart Prep shared a league title with rival St. Francis. This was the first time in school history that a Sacred Heart Prep girls’ tennis team had won a WCAL team title. The 2004 lady Gators were also the first girls’ tennis team in school history to qualify for the Central Coast Section (CCS) team tournament. The Gators advanced all the way to the semi-finals before falling to the eventual CCS team champion (Monta Vista). The 2005 season proved to be even more impressive as Mafileo and her Gator squad swept through WCAL play with a perfect 14-0 record. The 2005 lady Gators became only the second team in Sacred Heart Prep school history to record an undefeated season in WCAL play (the other was the 2005 girls’ water polo team). The 2005 team advanced to quarter-finals of the CCS team tournament before suffering a tough 5-2 loss to an inspired Archbishop Mitty team. The 2005 season was capped off with junior Sam Rosekrans winning the CCS singles title with a thrilling 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (10-8) victory over Archbishop Mitty’s talented Taylor Davis. Rosekrans’ win over Davis was the first CCS tennis title won by a lady Gator in school history. In 2006 the Gators finished the year with an 18-7 record. Their 12-2 record in WCAL play earned them a tie for second place with St. Francis. The team once again went deep into the CCS team tournament before losing in the semi-finals to the eventual champions, Monta Vista. Junior Haley Hemm earned “All-Tournament” honors at the prestigious National High School Team Tennis Tournament in Corona del Mar. Hemm and Senior Sam Rosekrans capped the year off by winning the CCS doubles championship for SHP. The 2007 Gators compiled an impressive 18-5 record and their 11-3 record in league play placed them in sole possession of second place in the tough WCAL. The year ended in the quarter-finals of the CCS team tournament with the team losing a hard fought 5-2 decision to St. Ignatius.

The boys' program has evolved into one of Northern California's finest under Mafileo's leadership. The 2004 season, Mafileo's first as head coach, brought home the first Private Schools Athletic League (PSAL) title in school history. The 2004 team was a perfect 12-0 in league play and finished the season with a 17-6 record before losing in the second round of the CCS team tournament to a strong Los Altos High team. The 2005 team had another outstanding season. Mafileo led the 2005 squad to another perfect 12-0 season in PSAL play. She also guided the Gators to regular season wins over perennial tennis powers Monta Vista and Los Gatos. The team's only regular season loss was a hard fought 4-3 decision at Homestead. The Gators went on to claim their first CCS team title in tennis with a 5-2 win over top-seeded Menlo. The CCS win over Menlo enabled the 2005 Gators to advance to the NorCal team tournament where they lost a heartbreaking 4-3 decision in the semi-finals to a talented and tenacious Alameda High team. The 2005 season ended with freshman Jamie Hutter and sophomore Adam Davison winning the CCS doubles title--the second CCS title earned by the Sacred Heart boys' team during the 2005 season. The 2006 team had an incredible year finishing the season with a 24-2 record. The Gators won their third straight PSAL title and then went on to win their second straight CCS title with a 5-2 win over Saratoga. They capped their year off by winning SHP's first NorCal team tournament by defeating Bellermine in the finals (7-0). The highlight of the NorCal team tournament was SHP's narrow 4-3 victory over Monte Vista (Danville) in the semi-finals. Junior Mirza Klis played his best tennis of the year in a stirring 6-0, 5-7, 7-6 (7-0) victory over highly ranked Tim Lantin at the #3 singles position. The final set tie-breaker was played with the team match score tied at three matches apiece and a place in the finals at stake. The 2006 season ended with sophomore Erik Blumenkranz and junior Mirza Klis earning the Gators' second straight CCS doubles title. The 2007 SHP team finished the year with a best ever record of 26-1. They dominated PSAL play with a perfect 14-0 record. In the early spring the Gators traveled down to Corona del Mar to compete in the western regional of the National High School Tennis Team Invitational Tournament. SHP ended up beating the top three seeded teams (#3 Dana Hills, #2 University High, and #1 Santa Barbara High) in the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. Each of these contests was an extremely close and hard fought 5-4 victory. The win by SHP was the first by any Northern California team in tournament history. The team then traveled to Mason, Ohio to compete against the three other regional winners (from the east, mid-west and south). Again, the Gators came out on top beating the #1 seeded team from the southern regional (Florida’s Dr. Michael M. Krop High School) in the finals. The score in the finals was 6 matches to 3. Senior Mirza Klis was named to the “All-Tournament” team at the regional team tournament and both Mirza and junior Erik Blumenkranz earned the honor at the national tournament. While SHP began the CCS team tournament as the #1 seeded team, the Gators were beaten 4-3 in the semi-finals by an athletic and inspired Bellarmine team. While it was a disappointing loss, the SHP team was happy for Bellarmine’s two outstanding seniors Ron Wu and David Clarke. Both David and Ron are not only excellent players but classy competitors and great teammates. The year concluded with senior Mirza Klis and sophomore John Parsons teaming up to win Sacred Heart Prep’s fourth CCS doubles title in the past four years.

Jack Helu
Coach/Mentor, Dexterity Sports and Literacy

Helu, 29, grew up in East Palo Alto and learned the game of tennis through his involvement with the East Palo Alto Tennis and Tutoring Program (EPATT). He earned a scholarship to attend Pinewood High School where he competed on the tennis team for four years (1993-6). Helu was a main contributor to Pinewood’s 1995 team that lost a tough 4-3 decision in the Central Coast Section finals to Paly (Palo Alto High School). Helu is currently an instructor/mentor at Dexterity Sports and Literacy – a non-profit organization that serves “at-risk” children in East Palo Alto. Helu is known for his powerful serve (In 1996, Helu entered and won the fast serve contest at what is now the Sybase Open--his fastest serve was clocked at 121 mph), his kind and patient disposition, and his ability to make team tennis an enjoyable experience for all the student-athletes who play for him. His coaching style and pleasant demeanor have been instrumental in cultivating more interest in the tennis program on campus.

Cornell Wilder
Program Director, Dexterity Sports and Literacy

Wilder, 29, grew up in East Palo Alto and learned the game of tennis through his involvement with the East Palo Alto Tennis and Tutoring Program (EPATT). Wilder earned a scholarship to attend Pinewood High School where he was a four year starter (1993-6) on the tennis team. Wilder was a co-captain and the #2 singles player on Pinewood’s 1995 team that lost in the Central Coast Section finals to Paly (Palo Alto High School). Even though Wilder did not begin playing tennis until the seventh grade, he became the first EPATT team member to attain a junior tennis ranking. He graduated from Cal Berkeley in 2001, earning a bachelor’s degree in sociology. He spent two years working at Maxim Integrated Products (a leading technology company in San Jose) before taking over as the director of tennis for Dexterity Sports and Literacy--a non-profit organization that serves “at-risk” children in East Palo Alto.

Stephanie Schnitter
Harvard University

Stephanie will return as a member of our coaching staff in 2008. Stephanie, a former Central Coast singles and doubles champion from St. Francis High School, has held junior rankings as high as #1 in Northern California and #11 nationally. She is currently attending Harvard University where she is the team captain and a starting member in both singles and doubles for the Crimson. During the 2005-6 season Schnitter posted an impressive 23-1 singles record in dual matches. Her stellar play helped Harvard earn their first top 10 ranking in school history. Stephanie is working towards earning a bachelor’s degree in Economics.

Jenna Long
University of North Carolina

Jenna will return as a member of our coaching staff in 2008. She played #1 singles and #1 doubles for a Tar Heel program that is consistently ranked among the top 10 nationally. During her senior season, Long earned national collegiate rankings as high as #4 in singles and #1 in doubles. In 2007, Jenna won the NCAA doubles title and was named ITA Senior Player of the Year. Jenna graduated with a degree in Political Science and she is currently playing professional tennis.

Erik Blumenkranz
Sacred Heart Prep

Erik is currently a senior at Sacred Heart Prep. Erik is one of the top ranked junior tennis players in the United States. He is also a team captain and a top performer on the Sacred Heart Prep tennis team which has won numerous titles since Erik joined the program three years ago. Erik was a highly sought after student-athlete who was recruited by Yale, Stanford and Harvard. Erik chose to attend Yale next fall.

John Parsons
Sacred Heart Prep

John is currently a junior at Sacred Heart Prep. John has earned junior tennis rankings as high as #4 in Northern California. He has also been an outstanding performer on the SHP tennis team. During his freshman and sophomore seasons he has gone undefeated in the #1 doubles position for the Gators. He is currently the reigning CCS doubles champion (with former SHP teammate Mirza Klis). John has spent the last three years coaching in our clinics and camps at Sacred Heart Schools. He is an excellent young coach who relates well to the children in our program.

Dawn Hemm
Assistant Athletic Director, Sacred Heart Prep

Dawn has served as the assistant athletic director at Sacred Heart Prep for sixteen years and has over twenty years of coaching experience. We are thrilled that coach Hemm will be part of our summer tennis camp staff again this summer. Her wealth of experience and positive coaching philosophy help us create a great learning environment for our campers.

Director Jeff Arons
Director of Tennis, Sacred Heart Schools

Jeff Arons directs all tennis camp/clinic programming at Sacred Heart Schools and serves as the school's director of tennis. He has 38 years of playing and coaching experience. Jeff grew up in the Palo Alto Area and spent 11 years competing in junior tennis tournaments. He attended Gunn High School in Palo Alto where he was a member of the Gunn teams that won 200 straight dual matches and claimed 10 consecutive CCS team championships. Jeff went on to be a four year starter at Stanford University where he earned All-American honors, played on two NCAA championship teams, and was a two-time Pac-10 doubles champion (with Scott Davis and Mike Falberg).

Jeff has over 20 years of coaching experience working with players of all ages and abilities. He has been fortunate to have had a unique set of coaching opportunities that have helped him develop as a coach. Jeff spent 12 years in East Palo Alto creating and directing an inner-city tennis/academic after-school program (East Palo Alto Tennis and Tutoring Program). In 1994 this program was recognized by the ATP (the professional tennis players' union) as one of the top 8 inner-city tennis programs in the world. In addition, Jeff has served as a private coach for over 30 highly ranked junior players who have gone on to play tennis at such schools as Stanford University, Harvard University, Brown University, Dartmouth College, University of Pennsylvania, University of Notre Dame, University of North Carolina, and the University of Illinois.

Jeff has also worked extensively with a wide array of college and pro athletes. He has been a private coach for 17 student-athletes who have played at Stanford University. Thirteen of these athletes earned All-American honors while at Stanford. He has privately tutored 4 NCAA singles champions from Stanford and 5 NCAA doubles champions also from Stanford. At the pro level, players he has coached have won 11 Grand Slam doubles titles (Wimbledon, US Open, French Open and Australian Open) and have been ranked as high as #5 in the world in singles and #1 in the world in doubles.