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Varsity
Tonight was a really good night of responding to adversity for the Bruin varsity tennis team. The players showed tonight that they can really come back with belief, even when things have gotten difficult or aren't going smoothly. That's a hallmark of great players, which I believe we are becoming with each match.
The first piece of adversity was a bit self-inflicted. We keep trying to find lineups that balance or strengths and weaknesses. And so, more than any other season, we've played different lineups in so many matches. This means many of our doubles players keep having to play with new partners. In fact, in our 12 matches we've played 9 different doubles lineups! Many of them have performed well, and tonight we put that difficulty into play again, switching Ian into #1D. But Ian and Breece played with confidence, starting out well and showing that a new lineup, new doubles partner... nothing would stop their effort.
There were all different forms of difficulty tonight. At #3S, Gideon went down early in each set. Whether it was nerves or being a bit unfocused, he quickly got it back together. He responded with a really steady game. His groundstrokes kept him in the points well, and he was able to get forward to the net and force errors as well. Gideon was able to be our first off the court, with a 6-1, 6-1 win.
More adversity came for Noah at #2S. He also fell behind to start each set, before being able to turn it around. He was playing a player with a very similar style, and so it took him a little bit in each set to figure out how to win points, hit winners, and force errors. In the second set, he actually went down 3-1. This can sometimes bring out a little panic, but he focused on his energy and feet and charged back for the win.
The biggest moments of pressure came in the three remaining matches. Both doubles and #1S were tight matches in scoreline, and tight in each actual set. Most times these positions flipped the scorecards, they were turning one game for the Bruins and one game for the Panthers. All night, we watched the scorecards on the three courts read 3-2, 4-3, or 6-5. The close matches made for important points, and it seemed like we kept winning the most important ones.
The first of these matches to end was #2D. And in this match, Emerson and Tristan actually clinched the team match for us. Both sets for the doubles team seesawed back and forth. NorthWood would pull ahead and then we'd put the pressure on and take a lead again. Both sets had crucial 5-5 games that we were able to win, holding serve to give us the opportunity to break for the set win. Emerson and T both served extremely well, as I kept reminding them that they were good servers! They also showed a great ability to make clutch returns. Keeping the ball low, they were able to also follow it to the net with another great doubles strategy - getting 2 up at the net. With this momentum coming forward, they forced or coaxed the Panthers into errors in key moments. The match clinching point was a thing of beauty, as Tristan forced both Panther players deep with great forehands, and then he and Emerson had the net to themselves. Really proud of how they played smart and aggressive even when dealing with match pressure.
At #1D, Breece and Ian dealt with perhaps the most adversity. A new partnership, they fell behind in the first set, but immediately broke serve to even it up. From there it was back and forth, with their play never really getting to its sharpest. Breece would play well while Ian would struggle, then it would switch. They couldn't accelerate ahead as they couldn't get their best play at the same time.
This cost them the first set, and then they had a dip in energy. That energy dip also meant their quality of play went down. They double faulted, missed returns wide, put volleys in the net. But they didn't stop believing. Down 5-2, they mounted a second set comeback. They found the switch that turned the energy back on. They hit unbelievable serves and didn't think twice putting away overheads. They so turned around the match, they were an unstoppable force. Ian and Breece sent the second set into a tiebreak and there was no doubt that they would win it. They won at their second attempt at a set point, leading into a third set.
Which left us just Cameron's match to finish. Cameron has been dealing with difficulties as well. He's been flipping back and forth from doubles to singles and back and again. Even in practice we've been working on both things. After such an awesome doubles win over Westview, it took a bit for him to gain his confidence again in singles. And yet, even without full confidence in his weapons, Cam was able to win points in the big moments. When he was down in the first set, he forced a tiebreak and won it. When he lost the second set, he took an early lead in the third. When he lost the lead in the third, he finally became aggressive. He crushed some serves, forced some errors, found his short ball aggression. With that, Cameron was able to win the last three games of this intense, almost 2 and a half hour match. And we walked off the courts, despite the cramps from such a long match, knowing we can always respond.
JV Recap
Unfortunately, this was another one of these matches where because there was action on 10 courts, I didn't get to see it all. So I don't have a great description of the JV match. I did get to watch Gabo finish off his victory at #1SJV! Leading in the match, he did an admirable job to get to the final point. Sometimes, finishing off a match can be difficult. But he kept his feet flashing and the ball in play. Keeping the ball in the court always gives you a chance, and Gabo took that today.
In many of the other matches, I got to see moments of great play. We have to keep believing in those moments all throughout the match, moving to them, believing them. That's how we'll get better. I got to see Dominic really moving into his shots, hitting great returns and serving under pressure. I got to see Elliot controlling his backhand, staying on his toes. I saw Adam moving extremely well at the net and staying active, Keagan having such pure strikes on the ball. I got to see Justin serving well, trying to move forward. All these give us the opportunity of growth!
Moments of Joy
These are going to be moments that I saw in the match that were fun, beautiful and memorable! Again, just from what I happened to see :-)
These are going to be moments that I saw in the match that were fun, beautiful and memorable! Again, just from what I happened to see :-)
Tristan Chases Down the Lob!
Ending practice the other day, I noticed that we are usually pretty bad at running down lobs. So we did a quick little drill to focus on that. In the match tonight, I got to see Tristan use that. He was up at the net with Emerson and a lob went up. Tristan sprinted back to get to the lob, and gave himself plenty of time to turn and hit a forehand. His retrieval caught the on-rushing Panther player by surprise, and he chipped the ball back to Tristan. Now regathered, Tristan ripped a forehand down the line for a passing shot winner. His hustle on retrieval set him up to win the point!
Gabo's and Adam's Aggression!
In playing doubles, it's always important to have the net player stay alert and aggressive. They create such a threat when they show that they are willing to take chances and get volleys. Gabo and Adam was just such threats in his match with Dominic and Elliot. We were leaping and leaning and dancing across the net. In these matches, the games that we won often came on errors made by our opponents while we were attacking the net. An active net person doesn't just win points with their own volleys, they win points by forcing errors from their opponents. I saw Gabo and Adam doing that tonight!
Emerson Gets Back Up!
In the third set of his doubles match, Emerson was trying to stay aggressive at putting things away at the net. The Panthers had big forehands, and in one point, Emerson began to sneak cross court to try to steal a putaway. NorthWood hit a big forehand, low over the net, and Emerson crouched and bent to volley it back over the net. He lost his footing and slipped down as the ball landed in, near the baseline in the forehand corner. Emerson quickly scrambled to his feet as his opponent prepared another forehand winner down the line, but Emerson reacted quickly to put the volley away! A true example of our resilience in the face of adversity, he got knocked down but got right up again!
Moments of Encouragement
This segment is where I'll highlight ways that we built each other up during the match or the lead up to it.
This segment is where I'll highlight ways that we built each other up during the match or the lead up to it.
Surrounding Cameron
Cameron has played 5 hours and 30 minutes of high quality tennis this week. After his 3 hour doubles match with Westview at #1D, he played 2 and half hours tonight at #1S. Constantly playing at the highest level, and having to bring your best level to match it, takes it out of a person. Cameron was cramping and sore, but his teammates were ready to carry him. The guys met him at the door of the court, celebrating his long win tonight. They bumped chest and gave high fives and let him know they were proud of him and glad for him. It's fun to share these memories with our seniors - to be so proud of the work they are doing. I love to see the whole team gathered around!
Moment of Intention
This is a space where I will offer a short prayer for the team.
Lord, so many things in Your kingdom are about coming back. The disciples lose faith but then come back to You. The prodigal son runs away and comes back home. There is such hope in that. Help us to not turn away. To come back. To turn toward each other like we did tonight. To turn toward You. Thanks so much!
Scores
Varsity
#1S - Cameron Heinisch - 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-4 - Caleb Yoder (10)#2S - Noah Schrock - 6-3, 6-2 - Caleb Vincent (9)
#3S - Gideon Miller - 6-1, 6-1 - Ty Stankovich (10)
#1D - Breece Erickson/Ian McHugh - 5-7, 7-6 (5), 4-6 - Nic Anderson (11)/Logan Perry (12)
#2D - Tristan Mast/Emerson - 7-5, 7-5 - Wes Newcomer (11)/Joe Hahn (12)
Junior Varsity
#1SJV - Gabo Brenneman Ochoa - 8-6 - Brennan Chilberg (10)
#2SJV - Elliot Hertzler Gascho - 3-8 - Sam Holden (11)
#1DJV - Justin Hochstedler/Keagan Meyer - 3-8 - Zachary Hochstetler (11)/Easton Feenstra (10)
#2DJV - Justin Hochstedler/Keagan Meyer - 5-8 - Ryker Cisney (10)/Ezra Cook (10)
#3DJV - Adam Siemens Rhodes/Dominic Ramer - 2-8 - Trent Beer (12)/Alex Yoder (12)
#4DJV - Elliot Hertzler Gascho/Adam Siemens Rhodes - 4-8 - Shawn Miller (11)/Wyatt Hammond (11)
#5DJV - Gabo Brenneman Ochoa/Dominic Ramer - 7-9 - Logan Marker (10)/Colin Moyer (9)
Good games.
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