Climbing Report 9: Triton

Match Report
So, I actually missed this match as I attended my grandfather's funeral. My grandfather was an awesome guy, and a big part of my becoming a fan of sports. Actually, both of my grandpas have had a large role in my desire to teach, coach and be involved in sports. It was good to celebrate his life with my family.

And it seems that this match went well also. In texting back and forth with a couple of players, it seems that the main feeling from this match is that we were happy to get a win, even if we didn't feel like it was our greatest tennis. And that's great. We've had so many close matches where we've played well but not quite had enough to seal the victory.

But since I wasn't at the match to see all the play, and since we've now gotten halfway through the season, here's some interesting stats to think about.

About Our Opponents
- 9 of the 11 teams we've played so far having winning records.
- 2 of those teams were District-Ranked when we played them.
- The average record of the teams we've played is 7-3.

About Us
- We have won 29 varsity positions and lost 26.
- That means our average match score actually comes out to 3-2 win for us on varsity.
- Excluding Howe, 9 BC players have played their first varsity match this season.

What This Means
- We are a young team who continues to compete, even though it isn't showing up in our win-loss record. This year, when we entered the season, I asked you all to think about what legacy you would leave. Halfway through the year, I would say that your legacy has been to have a growth mindset and compete. To show some grit. We are accomplishing that.

What's Next
- Joy. Now we want to accomplish this growth without the pressure, without the expectations. Go and play tennis because of the "sheer and savage joy of swinging at a moving target."

Climbing Up (My Moments of Gratitude)

1st Rung - I'm extremely grateful to the Nisley's, who coached this match in my absence. None of what we do in Bethany athletics could be accomplished without our parents, and the Nisley's helped me out in a big time of need. Thanks!

2nd Rung - I'm thankful to the guys who texted me updates during the match, while I was sitting in the funeral. I knew you'd be excited, so I put my phone on silent and after the funeral was done, it was refreshing to see the scores and talk to you about how it went. I love your excitement for one another!

3rd Rung - I'm thankful for the practice this week. I don't have a good space to say this, but there was a lot of good effort at practice this week. We're moving into higher level skills - driving the ball and getting depth, attacking the net quickly in a rally, figuring out when to be aggressive - and you guys transitioned well into these skills with good attitudes!

Scores
Varsity
#1S - Jonathon Yousey - 6-2, 6-2 - Carter Kuntz (11)
#2S - Liam Bradford - 6-1, 6-2 - John Gardner (9)
#3S - Joel Yoder - 6-0, 6-0 - Trevor Miller (11)
#1D - Jacob Woolace/Nathan Oostland - 7-5, 6-2 - Keygan Moiser (12)/Chase Butler (11)
#2D - Jonah Farran/Philip Krabill - 6-4, 6-2 - Tyler Heckaman (10)/Jared Bules (10)

Junior Varsity
#1SJV - Will Nisley - 8-1 - Gavin Greer (10)
#2SJV - Kameron Branum - 8-2 - Chase Whybrew (10)
#3SJV - Kameron Branum - 6-0 - William Schactzle (9)