Blackhawk Christian Match Report - 2019

Scores

V: Bethany Christian 5, Blackhawk Christian 0
JV: Bethany Christian JV 3, Blackhawk Christian JV 1

Photos
Click here for photos from the match.

Varsity Recap

For a 5-0 match, this was a very exciting night!

First of all, it was Senior Night, so it was a chance to watch our seniors go out and compete for a win on a night where we could honor them. That often adds an element of energy to the match. Secondly, Blackhawk continues our swing of better opponents. We had a series of matches where we played teams that really struggled to stay in rallies with us, but now we've played several teams in a row that were fun to compete against. Finally, we had several positions have the exact matches that they needed, and they figured out some things that will hopefully help them throughout the season as well.

At #1S, Caleb has truly been improving week by week, match by match this year. He played two of the best players he'll see all season last week, playing two guys who had made our All-District team last year. He put up a great fight, even if the scores didn't show it, and improved. Tonight, he continued that same type of play, moving the ball around the court and forcing errors. As a result, he picked up the first win of the night for us. It was just what he needed, reinforcement if his progression with a win.

At #2D, Tyson and Will needed to break out of a little funk they'd been in. They had been struggling to make simple shots, and were getting down on themselves. Early in this match, it seemed like they were struggling again, as they were finding it hard to break the Braves serve. Down 4-3, they found some positive and sustainable momentum. From that point on, they began to roll. Tyson and Will won 8 of the last 9 games, to grab our second point with the 6-4, 6-1 victory. In so doing, they got some strokes really working. Both guys began to serve well, but it was the smart returns that really turned the match around.

At #2S, Braden has had a similar story to Caleb. Over the past two matches, he's played really good tennis, but hasn't been able to reap the results of that because his opponents have been excellent. And so, tonight it was good to see him get a win. He got that win because he committed to moving his feet well and not reaching, which is the way he needs to win all his matches. His opponent liked to try and drop the ball short and slice it in front of Braden. When Braden shuffled forward and committed to getting through that ball, he forced errors and was able to win points in a row. It was a great match to watch unfold, and as it ended and secured our third point, I was grateful. The team had picked up another win.

Meanwhile, #1D rolled through their first set, picking up a 6-0 scoreline and playing some confident, simple, and aggressive tennis. But for whatever reason, this disappeared as they entered the second set. They found themselves down 3-0, and the games that got them there were full of tentative movement and stiff swings. As the set continued, they struggled to correct this, but they couldn't relax back into their pattern of dominance from the rest of the season.

They were in need of snapping back into it, and it looked like they might at the end of the second set. Trailing 3-5, Nathan and Joseph had multiple chances to put it back to 4-5, and then they would have been serving to tie the set back up. But instead, Nathan sailed a lob a bit long, and into a third set we went. The tentative theme continued to start the 3rd, going down 1-0 and having our serve broken. But then, it seemed like the weight just dropped off their shoulders and they figured it out. The aggressive net play came back, the smart placement of groundstrokes came back, the serves began to come back. The duo grabbed the next 6 games straight for a comfortable third set victory.

And yet, the most epic match of the night was still going, as Josh competed at #3S. Josh started this match in his normal way, scrambling and sending ball after ball back. Mistakes piled up for his opponent, and Josh jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Suddenly, the Brave #3S changed tactics and rushed the net. Josh was flustered and lost 8 straight games to lose the first set and go down 2-0 in the second.

It didn't look good at that point. Josh was frustrated. We knew what to do, Josh had to strike passing shots and hit lobs with intention. He wasn't sure if he could do it. Shots were feeling off and his passing shots were simply being smashed back down by the onrushing opponent. Josh looked on the edge of giving up. He needed to find some positivity.

He found it by celebrating his good shots. When his shot forced his opponent to make a mistake, he gave himself a fist pump. And slowly, the match began to change. Now instead of streaks, they were trading games until Josh trailed 4-3. Then Josh took the next three games to win the set. In the third set, Josh took the early lead. Now his passing shots were low and difficult to volley, his lobs high and difficult to overhead from the back of the court. Then his opponent fought back, taking a 5-4 lead and serving for the match. But Josh was aggressive on return, and tied it at 5-5 by breaking at love. Then he held to go up 6-5. A hold from the Braves #3 sent the match into a tiebreak.

Josh had never played a tiebreak before, but he was riding a wave of positive adrenaline. With lobs, passing shots, and volleys, he took an early lead at 4-1, and then nursed that into a match point at 6-5. On that point,  Josh scrambled after a volley and forced his opponent to hit one more backhand volley off a hard forehand passing shot. The volley floated wide, and Josh had secured a tiebreak, comeback victory!

That sealed off a 5-0 win for us. And it let us go watch the JV, where the other seniors were competing.

Junior Varsity Recap
Our three seniors played tonight at the three singles positions. Each of them competed so well. Chris Craw has played most of his career at doubles. Singles relies on consistency for sure, something that he has gotten so much better at over the course of this year. In his match, he was consistent. But singles is also about finding a smart yet aggressive way to end points. And that was where Chris struggled. But when he had great points, he had great points! In one point, he put 4-5 groundstrokes back to his opponent before hitting a great approach into the backhand. Then he volleyed his opponent back and forth across the court before finishing a forehand volley. These great points were the memories I will take from Chris's match.

Jim Lyu and Xudong Sun also played singles. Jim struggled a little bit with his serve to begin his match, but as he got comfortable it got so much better. His groundstrokes were really working. I loved looking down at his match and seeing the every now and then when he would hit an ace or pop a cross court forehand winner. Much of the match went back and forth, no one really ever getting more than a game lead. However, the match ended with Jim holding his serve and then breaking his opponent's for the 8-5 win.

Xudong is a forehand and backhand king right now. His shots from the baseline have pace, depth and spin. However, he continues to struggle a bit with the other elements of the game, serve and volley being the biggest. In his first service game, he couldn't find the range and had too many double faults. But he honed in quickly, and rolled from there. He picked up his 7th win of the season in convincing fashion.

At #1DJV, Theo and Aaron were just the better players. I loved watching their precision and control in the match. The opposing coach told me that these guys had great chemistry and that it must be fun to watch them play together, and I said it was. But it was actually the first time Aaron and Theo had played together this season. Their play looked really synchronized as they talked to each other, switched positions and attacked the net together.

What I love about their coach's comment though is that it is just true of our team. We can put many different doubles teams together and I am not worried about the chemistry. I just know that you will succeed together. Because our team has a great joy for one another.

You are accepted.

Before this match even began, I was proud of you. You had worked hard in practice yesterday, you had focused in the warmup for the match. You were all in on supporting the seniors. These things mean so much to me, because they allow us to take steps toward being the type of people we want to be. And I love watching that process, being part of it, and seeing you value it. Because you are trying to be people of true character, and mostly succeeding, I was proud of you!

You are sustained.
Today, we are sustained by these moments of joy...

1. Our Seniors
Tonight, we celebrated the senior players. Every team tends to follow the lead of the seniors. These guys have set a focused, joyous, friendly tone for the team this year. They are hard-working but gentle hearts, who rejoice with others around them. I want to thank again Caleb, Nathan, Chris, Xudong and Jim for their influence on the program. You can read what we had to say about each player on the links below.

Chris Craw
Jim Lyu
Nathan Oostland
Caleb Shenk
Xudong Sun

2. Our Families
Tonight, our families came together to celebrate the seniors. They did it by providing a wonderful meal for everyone to enjoy. It was delicious. But doing a little bit of organizing for the meal helps remind me how awesome our parents really are. I loved getting a bit of time to pray with everyone, as we stood around the seniors. I love knowing that we are supported even by those who aren't there at every practice and game.

3. Our Brothers
I love our team. I love our team huddles. I love our team cheers. I love our team songs. I love our team enthusiasm. I love who you are. Thanks for being brothers.

You have achieved.

We never gave up. That is an achievement.
We stayed positive. That is an achievement.
We adjusted our games when we needed, That is an achievement.
We played with energy. That is an achievement.
We committed to moving our feet. That is an achievement.
We won the varsity match. That is an achievement.
We won the JV match. That is an achievement.
We celebrated our 5 seniors with a wonderful meal. That is an achievement.

Prayer
Lord, help us rejoice in You always. I will say it again, may we rejoice. God, let our gentleness be evident to all, for You are near. May we not feel anxious about anything, but in everything may we enter prayer, petition and thanksgiving. May we present all of our requests before You. And may Your peace that transcends understanding guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. May we think on all that is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable and excellent. And what we learn, may we put it into practice. And may Your peace be with us.

Scores
Varsity
#1S - Caleb Shenk - 6-2, 6-1 - Colton Romine (11)
#2S - Braden Bohn - 6-2, 6-3 - Rylan Doden (9)
#3S - Josh Cartwright - 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) - Wes Tainer (12)
#1D - Nathan Oostland/Joseph Mounsithiraj - 6-0, 3-6, 6-1 - Bear Roberts (12)/Gage Sefton (9)
#2D - Will Nisley/Tyson Miller - 6-4, 6-1 - Aaron Jentgen (12)/Ryan Neff (12)

Junior Varsity
#1SJV - Chris Craw - 3-8 - Caleb Gibson (11)
#2SJV - Jim Lyu - 8-5 - Harry Allen (9)
#3SJV - Xudong Sun - 8-1 - Josh Wallace (9)
#1DJV - Theo Siemens-Rhodes/Aaron Shenk - 6-1 - Chandler Pope (11)/Kelsen Volkert (11)