'The team to beat'
Isabelle Martineau going in for an easy hit during practice. (Bethany Rolfson/TWN)
Morgan Snyder taking her swing during practice. (Bethany Rolfson/TWN)
Jhamaal Sykes racing towards a shot during practice. (Bethany Rolfson/TWN)
Senior Logger Colin Maloney anticipating a volley during Tuesday night’s practice. (Bethany Rolfson/TWN)
Tennis Coach Kyle Hannah greets and instructs his team before practice. “Be better when you leave than when you got here." (Bethany Rolfson/TWN)
With a team that can’t wait to win, tennis Coach Kyle Hannah said he’s looking forward to a good year.
“If they play as well as last year, they should be the team to beat,” Hannah said.
Expectations are high for the team that just came off placing first at the state tournament and a coach that was named “Coach of the Year” last year, but for Hannah, the drive to win hasn’t gone to his head.
His model he still sets for his team is to first and foremost have fun, and, second, to be aggressive.
When one of his players makes a mistake, Hannah encourages them to take four seconds to think about their mistake, four seconds to learn how to fix it and four seconds to get ready for the next point.
The current players, Hannah said, are eager to learn and have the ambition to win.
“(Recently) we had a lot of snow on the courts, and they were here shovelling,” Hannah said. “They’re ready to get out here and see some sun.”
Many of the team members are going above and beyond what they do during practice, including Ryan Nagle and Jhamaal Sykes, who both attended tennis camps over last summer.
Sykes took sixth last year, and Hannah said he’s itching to place again this year.
With three years under his belt, Sykes admitted that he’s new compared with his teammates. Despite being a “newbie,” Sykes said he’s “absolutely” looking to go to state this year.
“Libby’s a powerhouse when it comes to tennis this year, especially when it comes to our conference,” Sykes said. “I fully expect for Libby to fill-out all four of our single spots to go to state. Especially Colin Maloney and Cody Wood. They’re going to place, and hopefully I’ll end up placing too.”
On the girl’s side, Hannah said that Isabelle Martineau, Jessica Jones and Mehki Sykes are looking to place at state.
Although the boys’ team only lost one player, Jason Brant who placed fourth last year, the girls’ team lost five out of their eight players, including Kaylene Hudson who took second last year.
Hannah said the girls had some big shoes to fill, but the girls are willing and wanting to fill those shoes and “start fresh.”
With 25 kids out this year, Hannah said they have a good number to work with. Usually, Hannah said, they have numbers in the mid-30s.
Terry Oedewaldt, assistant coach who Hannah spoke of “We couldn’t be where we’re at without him,” said there’s a benefit to having a smaller team this year.
“I would like to see 80 kids come out for tennis, but it would be a nightmare,” Oedewaldt said. ““We’ve got just a few new kids so it’s easier to spread the love around basically and get to everybody, rather than letting the experienced kids on their own more.”