My most favorite memory from the 2009 season is a match that we lost. That is not too surprising if you know me, I deeply believe that more good can be done through a loss than through a victory. A loss can leave you tasting your desire to win, can motivate you to work harder, can be the very thing that pushes you to a truly crucial victory.
When we faced Eastern at the Wabash Invitational, I fully expected to lose the match. Eastern was a senior-laden team that had only lost once all season, and we were literally just coming off a stinging defeat from Wabash. As in, the singles matches in the Eastern match started before we had even lost to Wabash. That is the way these tournaments go.
And early, it didn't look good for us. Ben Mast was playing one of the better #2 singles players he faced all year, and Blake Shetler (playing just his second match at #3 singles) lost his first set. Seth Krabill was competing well, but with Eastern's #1 doubles team sitting at undefeated for the year, victory looked bleak for us.
Of course, nobody could tell that to Kyle Miller and Austin Loucks. All year they had been our heroes, and in this match, they came out to prove that they could play at the highest level. And it was if that belief was flowing into the rest of the team. Kyle and Austin didn't back down at all, and played all out in their best set of the year.
Now Kyle and Austin's infusion into the team energy gives me the example to explore something I've always believed. Somehow, teams feed off of an individual's energy. When one person gives an impassioned "c'mon" or a doubles team offers a determined high five, it is not just seen and heard by teammates, somehow it is felt. It can come from players who are on the court or off of it. I've seen matches turn because the #1 singles player wins his match on an end court and then hustles down to lend his energy to #2 doubles. I've seen two players drop their first set, and then rally together, next to each other, to push the match into the third. Confidence breeds confidence, energy breeds energy, and so on and on.
And where does it all come from? Desire and care. The people who lend their energy to others are the ones who really care about more than themselves. Kyle and Austin wanted the team to be successful, they wanted the team to win matches, even if it was despite their own match. Both of them were flexible at the beginning of the season when we switched doubles partners around a million times. They were willing to do whatever it took to see the team win.
And so, with that attitude, when they got excited, everyone else did to.
Blake made a furious comeback in his match, attacking the net and being aggressive. Seth played with a determined game and sunk Eastern's #1 player in a tight 7-5, 7-5 affair. Russell Klassen and Nick Rebec came out and started their match with a bang, taking an early lead. The confidence, the belief had buoyed everyone, whether they consciously believed it or not.
But then, we lost.
You see, Eastern was really good. In fact, they were probably better than us. Kyle and Austin pushed their energy as far as it would go, but they couldn't take the tiebreaker in the first set. Russell and Nick held onto a lead, and served for the first set, but lost it instead in a tiebreak. Ben put up a fight but couldn't break down his opponent.
The shared team energy is awesome, but it takes more than that to win a big match.
It takes energy, talent and experience.
We've got talent coming back this next season. And five of the players who played in this match return, so we are going to have the experience under our belts. Hopefully, we can match the energy, because, if we do, we might find ourselves as champions.