For those of you who have followed us on the team website
(thanks Andrew and Jordan), via facebook or twitter or straight from NCAA.com
or Kalamazoo Colleges Website, you know it’s been a few days since Courtney and
Alyssa finished up a terrific season at the NCAA DIII individual national
championships.
Despite the tolls of a long season affecting our
preparation, we felt really good coming into the tournament. Both players competed last year, getting a
win in doubles and one goal was to go at least a round further. This was achieved in singles as Courtney backed up her #8
seeding with a solid win over the #1 player from Coe College.
Courtney did a terrific job staying focused
and finding different ways to win points because her opponent was giving her
nothing for free. Court fought through
some tough games where she just had to be consistent and in others, she mixed
in different types of offense to take the match in straight sets.
For her second match, we knew more offense would be needed
verses an experienced senior from Carnegie Mellon. While playing indoors due to rain was fine
for the players, it was disappointing for the fans who had to look through four
courts of play to see the action. Being
at the bench, I can tell you that the scoreline of 6-1,6-0 for her opponent
does nothing to describe how competitive this match was. So many games were long battles, including
the second game which was over 20 minutes long and showcased the best that both
players had to offer with long points ending in winners as the court finally
opened up for one or the other. While
not able to sustain this level of offensive effort through the rest of the
match, it is really the style of play that will take Courtney to a new level
next year. Better execution of shots
would have turned the match her way, but I was also amazed with how many
winners her opponent was able to hit while committing almost no unforced
errors. It’s tough to run into a player
whose style matches up so well against you and performs at her best, but I’m
proud of Courtney’s fight and ability and can’t wait to see how her singles
continues to grow.
After some food and a change of venue to Kalamazoo College,
Alyssa and Courtney were again on the end court for doubles. I’m not sure there is ever a good or bad draw
in doubles at nationals because all 16 teams are there because they can play
and they’ve been incredibly consistent throughout the year. We found out early on that this team from
Washington and Lee was for real as they served and returned big and then
settled into making simple plays over and over.
Soon, we were down 2 breaks though we hadn’t played poorly, just not
with the intensity we are capable of.
Then, for a few games the spark was lit and we got a break to pull the
score to 3-5 before they came up with some big shots to win the first set. The second set was a bit of a struggle as the
momentum went back to W&L as they capitalized on a few missed shots to
again take the lead and carry it to a straight set win.
We watched this team defeat a very good Williams team the
next day and push the #1 seed to the limit in 3 sets in the semifinal so it was
obvious they were playing their best tennis.
That’s really what this tournament was all about, and among the best
players in the country, Courtney carried herself with the poise and fight of a
champion and Alyssa played a wonderful match to conclude her college tennis
career.
After the tennis, we decided not to change our flights as
Courtney’s family was there and we were all happy to spend some time enjoying
each other’s company and seeing more of the tournament. We cheered on our men’s team as they played a
thrilling match losing in a third set tie break to the #2 seeds. We also got to spend some time with Mark and
Sandy, which was super fun (by the way, Sandy is now bowling strikes regularly
so watch out on the lanes Texas!).
Perhaps the best thing from my perspective was to have a couple more
days to be around Alyssa and see her hanging out with Courtney and Morgan. Alyssa not only has raised the level of
competition at Whitman, but her giving and positive personality will be
reflected on our team for years to come.
To say we’ll miss her on and off court is an understatement, but the
time that she’s had at Whitman has been truly special and I can’t wait to see
what the future holds for her.
I’ve heard many people describe college coaching over the
years, but two things that have stuck with me from my good friend at Boise
State Greg Patton are that, “ours is the best job in tennis” and “we’re in the
people business”. I couldn’t agree more
with you Greg, I’m loving this “job” and to be able to coach players as good as
Alyssa and Courtney and to know and mentor these amazing young women is the
best business I could hope to be in.
This does conclude our 2012-2013 season, and I’d like to
thank all of our players, students, faculty and staff at Whitman, our alums and
supporters and our terrific team families who have made it a special year. Summer is starting and I have some exciting news
to share in future posts regarding next year when we’ll look to keep improving,
but for now, enjoy your summer and thanks so much for your support.
-Coach John
