Thoughts from the Court
Posted 9/12/2008 11:58:00 AM
Sectional tournaments begin in just three weeks, which means the tennis season is more than halfway completed. It zips by faster than a Roger Federer forehand. Here are some thoughts to keep in mind as the season winds down:

1.) The junior varsity is the future of the program. At this time of year, programs should pay special attention to the JV players and look for ways to keep those players motivated and improving. I always try to play an intrasquad JV doubles tournament and an intrasquad JV singles tournament in the closing weeks of the season. The kids enjoy the competition, and the results help show who has made the biggest strides this season.

2.) My athletic director sent out a memo this week to all of our school’s coaches with some useful tips. He reminded us to not forget about our weakest players on the team. He encouraged us to take a few minutes to offer encouragement or provide instruction to those beginning level players. He also reminded us to make sure we are motivating our top players with an equal dose of positive motivation this time of year rather than beating them down with too much criticism.

3.) At this time of year, I always provide an opportunity for my seniors to “give back” to the program that has given them so much. One of our traditions for boys’ tennis is our Senior Talk, a day in which each of our seniors talks to the rest of the team at the end of a late-season practice. The seniors provide advice to the younger players on a wide range of topics: academic achievement, off-season tennis improvement, staying away from drugs and alcohol, taking advantage of your opportunities in life, and so on. It is an enriching day for all, and well worth the 30 minutes to an hour that is spent on the activity.

4.) As a coach, it’s time also to nominate players for postseason awards. A new Indiana All-Star match for senior boys has a Sept. 15 nomination deadline. Postseason all-conference and all-district awards carry a nomination deadline of Oct. 10. Academic all-state nominations also must be in by Oct. 10. In tennis, to be nominated for academic all-state, a player must compete in varsity matches at least 50% of the season, must have a minimum GPA of 3.6, and must score at least 1100 on the SAT (or 1650 including the writing portion) or 24 on the ACT.

Of course, as coaches we are mostly thinking this time of year about how we can best prepare our varsity teams for the sectional and beyond. But it’s important to also take care of the items listed above. In fact, some of the items above are more important in the long run than the results of the sectional.
Posted By: Tim Cleland  
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