"One thing we want ingrained in our players this off season is that you get better when your best effort becomes YOUR WAY OF LIFE!"- Tom Crean, head basketball coach at Indiana University
Random Quote
"One thing we want ingrained in our players this off season is that you get better when your best effort becomes YOUR WAY OF LIFE!"- Tom Crean, head basketball coach at Indiana University
Wednesday Opponent Overview
All Time Record vs. Prairie Heights: 13-1
Classic Matches:
Bethany Christian 3, Prairie Heights 2; 2004
The closest match that we've had with the Panthers since I started coaching, they brought a very experienced squad to the match. In this match, we suffered from the same problem we had much of the season. Strong doubles, but somewhat weak singles. Joel King won easily at #1S, and we took the doubles with ease... but the #2S and #3S that would cause difficulty during the year both lost. Really, both of our singles players were playing one position higher than they should have, but that can really cost a team over the course of a season.
Bethany Christian 4, Prairie Heights 1; 2005
Prairie Heights again brought six seniors to this match (much experience). But we brought five, and were able to take advantage of those positions. Wes Klassen had to claw out a long three set match, but his win kept alive his streak of matches won, which ended at 7 in a row in 2005.
Top Players over the Years: Zach Hollsinger, Zach Arnold, Anthony Ferguson, Nick Logsden, Phil Hubley, Brandon Buechley, Brandon Hollifield, Travis Northup
Last Season Result: Bethany Chrisitan 5, Prairie Heights 0
Returning Varsity Players:
#3S - Donald Cook (lost to Mikey Kelly, 0-6, 0-6)
#2D - Danny Hamm/Tyler Carbone (lost to Russell Klassen/Nick Rebec, 1-6, 0-6)
Top Returning JV Players:
Torin Kellett (lost to Blake Shetler, 1-8)
Brad Hughes (lost to Claude Stickler, 0-6; lost to Matt Ebersole, 0-6)
Outlook:
The matchups favor the Bruins heading into next season. We return more players, and the players that we return won their matches last year. The Panthers return 3, but none of those 3 was in a competitive match with our team last year. The Panthers are building up again, during our 2008 Sectional champion campaign, they also had a successful senior filled squad that finished a very respectable 4th in the NECC. Last year they began to build the program again. It will be interesting to see where they go from last year.
Abide With Me
I stumbled across this today and the music in it touched a note in me so I thought I'd share it.
This kind of music always reminds me of my childhood. When I was small we attended a tiny little county church, Beldor Mennonite. It was tucked away in a very rural hollar of Virginia near Skyline Drive. My parents drove the hour each Sunday with my brother and I, and most of the time my grandmother came with us until her health prevented it. She sat in the back seat of the car, always on the right side. I was in the middle next to her and my brother on the left. She usually had candy in her purse and a tissue or handkerchief tucked in her sleeve or her dress. My parents helped the little church with some leadership and support. I remember the little white chapel building, and the sound of the voices, there were never any instruments. I remember a framed reproduction of a painting of Jesus kneeling at a rock with a light shining on his face on the front wall of the chapel. I remember the man who preached there for years, he was a gentle man. He had a round Charley Brown shaped head with laugh lines and wire rim glasses. I doubt he ever had a microphone in front of him, he didn’t need one. He always seemed gentle and loving to me, and my memories of hearing him speak are good ones. I learned to read music as a child by watching the hymnal, noticing that when the notes went up the staff, so did the voices. It was a place where I absorbed simple music and a simple genuine faith.
I remember one night when the adults were inside and I was allowed to sit outside on the steps. That night remains vivid in my memory as the evening was beautiful and a whippoorwill filled the area with song. I don’t know why that evening stays with me, but I have thought of it often over the years. It was a beautiful night out under the stars, in a place where I felt absolutely no fear. The tall trees reached up to heaven, the stars shone with a special brilliance. I was surrounded by beauty and the haunting sound of the bird’s call. Even as a little bitty child, I could sense that God was in that place. It was a little bit of heaven, and it remains a precious memory.
Later, we would attend “Weaver’s Mennonite” church where there were more voices and more harmonies in the music. My parents were relatively devout people. My Dad’s father was a Mennonite Pastor, my Mother wore the covering, cape dress and black stockings in her youth. We were in church each Sunday, sometimes during the week as well. There was always lots of music, sometimes with instruments, sometimes without. It’s from this season of my childhood that I would have learned this hymn: “Abide with me.”
Tonight the moon is nearly full, the stars are out and I am remembering the sounds of my youth and finding comfort in these memories. This evening we sent a final email to our adoption Social Worker officially ending the process of an adoption we’ve worked at since November of 2007. The timing feels significant, this is indeed a milestone. Tomorrow I’ll be at UVA for a hysterectomy. This season of my life is concluding, I’m not going to be a mother in the literal sense. There is some sadness surfacing, these milestones are not without their grief. But I am not afraid. He will abide with me, sometimes I may even manage to sense Him nearby. There is a big opal moon, some bright stars and the stillness and beauty of the night. I may be alone, but He abides with me.
I remember one night when the adults were inside and I was allowed to sit outside on the steps. That night remains vivid in my memory as the evening was beautiful and a whippoorwill filled the area with song. I don’t know why that evening stays with me, but I have thought of it often over the years. It was a beautiful night out under the stars, in a place where I felt absolutely no fear. The tall trees reached up to heaven, the stars shone with a special brilliance. I was surrounded by beauty and the haunting sound of the bird’s call. Even as a little bitty child, I could sense that God was in that place. It was a little bit of heaven, and it remains a precious memory.
Later, we would attend “Weaver’s Mennonite” church where there were more voices and more harmonies in the music. My parents were relatively devout people. My Dad’s father was a Mennonite Pastor, my Mother wore the covering, cape dress and black stockings in her youth. We were in church each Sunday, sometimes during the week as well. There was always lots of music, sometimes with instruments, sometimes without. It’s from this season of my childhood that I would have learned this hymn: “Abide with me.”
Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me.
Tonight the moon is nearly full, the stars are out and I am remembering the sounds of my youth and finding comfort in these memories. This evening we sent a final email to our adoption Social Worker officially ending the process of an adoption we’ve worked at since November of 2007. The timing feels significant, this is indeed a milestone. Tomorrow I’ll be at UVA for a hysterectomy. This season of my life is concluding, I’m not going to be a mother in the literal sense. There is some sadness surfacing, these milestones are not without their grief. But I am not afraid. He will abide with me, sometimes I may even manage to sense Him nearby. There is a big opal moon, some bright stars and the stillness and beauty of the night. I may be alone, but He abides with me.
Tuesday Tennis Tip: Practice Correctly
Tip #1: AnticipationTip #2: Movement
Tip #3: Preparation
Tip #4: Grip
Tip #5: Stance
Tip #6: Swing
Tip #7: Backhand Basics
These are all the tips that we've been through in the past few weeks. With Spring Break coming up, I'll be switching over to a whole new set of articles. After Spring Break, there will be one week focused on the past season, 2009. These articles will review the season, lessons learned, memories formed, and relationships that grew.
Then, I'll move into the Spring features. Important Things, Traditions, Numbers, Cartoons, and other such nonsense.
With all that said, I'm not going to dive into another stroke breakdown here today. Besides, serve is probably the next thing I need to go through, and that is way to complicated to put into words.
So instead, we'll end this Winter Feature with the most important tip of all:
When you go to practice, pick a focus and stick with it. If you don't practice correctly, you won't get any better.
I look forward to seeing many Bruins out on the courts now that it is Spring! Let's get to it!
Monday Morning Match Memories
In the summer of 2003, I got a call from Dan Bodiker. I didn't know who he was. That seems weird, because everybody knows Bod. He wanted to know if I'd be interested in coaching the Bethany Christian tennis team. He told me he already had talked to my college coach and my uncle, and knew I was a good guy. So if I wanted to come in and talk, that would be great.I love tennis. So, I told him I was interested, that I would come talk, but that I was getting married in a week and a half, so I'd need to talk to my lovely bride-to-be. Also, I told him, we were not planning on staying in the area for more than one year, as we wanted to go live the big city life while we were young. I probably wouldn't be able to coach more than one year, but if he was okay with that...
I met the team the next week, four days before my wedding. Bod introduced me to them as their new coach, before we'd even talked about the details. But I love tennis, so I'd convinced my wife (it wasn't that hard, just had to talk through how it would work, and assure her that we could still move to Chicago in December), and I was ready to take the job. I'll never forget Jordan Kauffman's excitement at meeting me. He shook my hand and started talking and telling me that he would be the #3 singles player for the next season. I was a little overwhelmed at meeting all the new faces, but glad to see my team.
I may not have been planning on coaching for seasons and seasons, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to leave a lasting impact on these young players. From what I heard from the players, they had suffered through a rough season in 2002. So, they didn't have high expectations for 2003. What I had in mind was a change in attitude. I wanted to leave the program, even if just in a year, with all players having the belief that they could compete and achieve.
And so that was the message I took to the players as we began to practice. It was easy to see that it would be a change in philosophy for many of them, to take practice seriously. To compete with belief. To play with confidence. But leaders emerged. Joel King knew exactly what I was talking about, and so did senior Colin Yoder. They began to compete fiercely against one another for the #1 singles spot. And the team began to follow that leadership.
But then our schedule. We started out the season with Northridge, Concord, Jimtown, three teams that we had never beaten. So after the work of building confidence in practice, it was difficult to coax the guys through the first rough matches. In fact, we roughed out 10 0-6 sets over the coarse of these matches, with almost everybody suffering at least one.
And then, in our last match of the Concord Invitational, we played the Rochester Zebras. I knew nothing about Rochester at the time, except that they had also lost to Concord and Jimtown, and by similar scores. Tired of losing, I decided to shake up the lineup for the first time. I moved Seth Troyer, who had been playing extremely close matches at #3 singles, to #1 doubles with Jordan Mumaw, hoping to fortify that position. They ended up winning the Individual Sectional, so I guess that worked. Jordan Kauffman, my sure-fire #3, had been playing #1 doubles but now I slid him into a spot at #2 doubles. This really helped these positions.
The match with Rochester started well, for the most part. The strengthened doubles squads took their first sets easily and quickly, and it seemed as if my strategy was working. However, Ben Shenk, the new #3, lost his first set quickly. But that was the trade off, right? The match then looked as if it would come down to one of my two leaders, Joel King at #2 singles and Colin Yoder at #1 singles. We needed one win from the two of them to seal my first coaching victory.
And they were tight, both first sets went right to the end. Joel fought back and forth with fellow sophomore Carson Vanderbosshe. He won the first set 7-5 and we looked in good shape. Just one more set. Then, Colin went into a first set tiebreak with senior Ryan Gady, and he won it! Just like that we were in a powerful position in the match, having wrapped up both doubles and having set leads in 2 of the 3 singles!
And then Joel had the first occurrence of what would become a pattern in his matches. After grinding out the first set, and fighting for every point, Vanderbosshe couldn't do it anymore. Whether he was too tired, mentally or physically, or whether he just quit, I don't know. But the match was over, Joel rolled to the second set victory 6-0.
As a coach, I now had my first win. Something to refocus the team around. Colin Yoder then provided the icing, pulling out a hard fought three set win. The team was 1-3 on the young season, but growing, changing, learning.
I went home and told my wife, "I love this. I love this a lot. I think it's going to be hard for me to leave this team after the year." And it was, I'm still here.
Milestone
I celebrated a milestone with a little party at my house this week. I celebrated the end of my period! Why? Because I’m scheduled for a hysterectomy! Hubby and I have been married 19 years as of December 2009. We wrestled with infertility for 15 years, then started an International Adoption in November 2007. We were hoping for three children from Colombia. We had to turn down three sets of children in the process, they never actually did offer us what we asked for which was three healthy children, two boys and a girl, between zero and seven. We recently decided not to adopt three at one time. Furthermore, it is unlikely that we will adopt at all.
I may not join in when mothers speak of their children, I may never have photos of grandchildren to share. I may know nothing of those things and for a long time I felt like I had missed a fundamental element of what it means to be female. Women around the world, rich and poor women of every color shape and size were having children, but not me.
I was in a play a year ago where I played a young pregnant woman. I went through the whole pregnancy from the announcement to holding the baby in my arms each night of the show. It was a difficult challenge, thankfully there were a few close friends who helped me survive. During that season I grieved for the pregnancy I would never have. I got the stage pregnancy, in front of about 8,000 people (over the course of the show) and that is enough.
I’m having a hysterectomy on the 31st. It’s the end of an era for me that comes with some mixed feelings. That sad sad woman, who felt she was missing out, who felt like she was missing part of the experience of being female… that sad woman is going to need to move over, make a little room, give way for to a new creature. And this new woman is going to make her mark on this world, not through her offspring, but through her life.
When I wake up from surgery, my body will be renovated but I’ll still be all woman. And after the scars heal, I’ll get about the business of living my life. No longer childless, defined by what I am not and will never be. If you must define me by my family, then call me child-free. I’ll be strong, vibrant, creative, talented, and full of potential. And I’ll still be one hot bitch! I’ll tell ya, this has been one HELL of a long “period” and I am not sad to say goodbye. And if you listen closely when I’m home alone you might just hear me humming: “Happy Hysterectomy to me…”
I may not join in when mothers speak of their children, I may never have photos of grandchildren to share. I may know nothing of those things and for a long time I felt like I had missed a fundamental element of what it means to be female. Women around the world, rich and poor women of every color shape and size were having children, but not me.
I was in a play a year ago where I played a young pregnant woman. I went through the whole pregnancy from the announcement to holding the baby in my arms each night of the show. It was a difficult challenge, thankfully there were a few close friends who helped me survive. During that season I grieved for the pregnancy I would never have. I got the stage pregnancy, in front of about 8,000 people (over the course of the show) and that is enough.
I’m having a hysterectomy on the 31st. It’s the end of an era for me that comes with some mixed feelings. That sad sad woman, who felt she was missing out, who felt like she was missing part of the experience of being female… that sad woman is going to need to move over, make a little room, give way for to a new creature. And this new woman is going to make her mark on this world, not through her offspring, but through her life.
When I wake up from surgery, my body will be renovated but I’ll still be all woman. And after the scars heal, I’ll get about the business of living my life. No longer childless, defined by what I am not and will never be. If you must define me by my family, then call me child-free. I’ll be strong, vibrant, creative, talented, and full of potential. And I’ll still be one hot bitch! I’ll tell ya, this has been one HELL of a long “period” and I am not sad to say goodbye. And if you listen closely when I’m home alone you might just hear me humming: “Happy Hysterectomy to me…”
Simple As This: A Great Article
We need this attitude. From every one of us...
From Tennis Thoughts
I just ran across this article on Wozniacki by James Martin of Tennis.com. On the surface, the article might appear to equate offense with power. “She needs to hit harder and go for more winners.’ But if you read a little deeper you will see that there is more to it than that.
From Tennis Thoughts
I just ran across this article on Wozniacki by James Martin of Tennis.com. On the surface, the article might appear to equate offense with power. “She needs to hit harder and go for more winners.’ But if you read a little deeper you will see that there is more to it than that.
James Martin also talks about a mindset. It is an assertive mindset that distinguishes the true champions. Sampras does not have the most powerful serve. Federer does not have the most powerful strokes. They hit hard but there are others who can hit harder. They both have fluidity and variety. In fact, if you think about Federer, Sampras and McEnroe everyone would agree they have incredible hands. So does Borg and so does Nadal. It is not as natural but they have used variety to augment their games. And all of them used offense. But the overall theme of the article seems to bottle up the essence of a higher level of tennis.
In fact, I really think that Federer is the king of variety and strategy. He just uses all his weapons to move people around the court and then hits an easy winner. He is also not afraid to attack. There are times were seems to be shanking his backhand but will continue attacking. The same with his forehand. He is willing to lose a match but he will not give up attacking. In fact, you can watch Federer vs. Nadal in the Wimbledon final in 2008.
You probably saw Nadal falling to the ground and Federer missing a forehand after a somewhat awkward bounce. But what was Federer doing. He was hitting an aggressive approach shot. And that was on the last point of the match. He missed and the rest is history but he did not back down and stop attacking. If you watch the great players they will keep attacking until the very end. But they attack in all sorts of ways. Federer is the king at this because he uses variety to confuse opponents and create openings.
Martin points out that Wozniacki has reached a level of success with a pretty simple plan. She gets everything back and just outlasts her opponent. The problem is that the true champions will do more. They will assert themselves even if it means losing. He suggests that this is a necessary step that is needed for Wozniacki to begin winning tournaments.
There is one last thing that is interesting. Both Federer and Sampras seemed to arrive a little later (if we exclude Sampras USO at 19). Sampras talks about the fact that he was never afraid to lose. This might be part of the key. They might lose but this does not shake their self belief. Some people have even commented on Serena Williams as never admitting that she lost. It is is almost as if she could have won had she just had a little more time. Now it is not that they don’t know they lost. They know they lost. But I suspect that they quickly search for a reason and then try to rectify this. Champions may actually be defined in how they respond to losses. Federer seems to have actually improved his backhand in the last year. Lendl took the whole summer to prepare for Wimbledon and made it to the finals. Martin points out Bill Tilden actually developed a whole new weapon. Sampras switched his backhand in order to be able to approach and volley better. These things all indicate a certain mindset. It is indicative of them taking control and asserting themselves even in the face of defeat. It does not always guarantee victory. But it does guarantee that they will lose on their own terms. And for many of the best champions this assertive mindset led to victory more often than defeat.
Friday Tourney Talk
Above is the Sectional history, and I'd say it is pretty interesting. I don't know when the current Sectional was put together, but it must have been around 1991. For quite awhile, Goshen dominated things. But after 2000, it has been very balanced.In this decade, Fairfield has four titles, NorthWood three, then Goshen, Jimtown and us with one. I love the balance there. Everybody has won in the past 10 years. That is a very rare thing in Sectionals throughout the state, and I think it makes it more fun. I mean, Homestead has won 31 straight Sectional championships, so you can imagine how fun and rewarding it will be to win one more.
This year's Sectional should retain that balance, that competitiveness. Goshen, Fairfield, ourselves and NorthWood bring back significant pieces from last year's teams. That means players with Sectional experience. That should mean a competitive atmosphere for each tourney matchup. Even Jimtown, who loses quite a few pieces, has JV players who saw large amounts of varsity playing time.
I'd love to see another decade begin with a Bethany Christian championship. But I really hope that the level of competition stays equal. That's what makes it fun, and that is what should push us on.
I hope that it is already pushing some of you to put in the work. Because sweet is the reward!
Thursday Bracketology
Bracketology, the study of the bracket. Look at the Sectional bracket. The big question in breaking down this bracket is, which match do you want to draw? There are three distinct match possibilities.1. "The Play-In Game"
The PIG has some awesome advantages, while at the same time, it offers some real nightmares.
Advantages first: You get to start playing. While the other three teams practice and wait, you get to get the Sectional started two days early. Playing in the first game, you have a chance to get the jitters out of the way and get some momentum going with a win. If you win the PIG, you won't be playing your first Sectional match on Saturday morning, and your opponent will. Another advantage is if you are the underdog, your opponent may arrive at the Thursday match less prepared to take you seriously.
Disadvantages: You could end too soon. If you win the PIG, everything is roses. If you lose, everything is that much more bleak. When you begin your season, nobody sees it ending on a Thursday night. At worst, they imagine losing in that Saturday round of Sectional. Losing on Thursday night makes the season end too abruptly. You are back at school the next day, feeling like you should have practice but having nowhere to go. In addition, if you are an underclassman and lose the PIG, you don't get the experience of Sectional Saturday, which is something to be figured out in and of itself.
Bethany History in the PIG: Since I've coached at Bethany, we've only played on Thursday night once, when we defeated the heavily favored Falcons of Fairfield, 3-2, in one of my top 5 favorite matches ever. So, the Bruins have a nice history in the PIG match.
2. "The Predetermined Semifinal"
This match pits too teams together who drew each other straight in the blue-bottle draw. From Selection Monday and on through the week, you know who you are playing and what you are up against.
Advantages: The main advantage of this match is knowledge. And this knowledge can lead you to preparation. In 2006, we drew NorthWood in this matchup, and we had to get the doubles prepared to attack and worked consistently with Luke trying to get him ready to face a player who hits every shot back. In 2005, we drew Jimtown in this match, and we knew we had to take the lower positions and so we drilled hard to get them ready to attack. Last year, we drew Fairfield and tried to prepare everyone with a style of play that would suit their opponent.
Disadvantages: You have to think about it all week. You know who you are playing, you know your previous result against them, and it is hard to not let that get in your head over a long 5 days. When we beat Fairfield 5-0, we thought about it all week and came out to play unprepared and complacent. When we lost to Fairfield last year 4-1, we thought about our losses and weren't quite ready at some positions to be aggressive. The worry can drive you nuts. No worry this year, just play!
Bethany History in The Predetermined Semifinal": Besides the Fairfield PIG match, we have always been drawn into this match. That's 6 times since I've been coaching. In 2003 we lost to Goshen, 2004 and 2005 were to Jimtown, and 2006 to NorthWood. In 2008 and 2009 we split first round matchups with Fairfield. So that makes 1-5 in these matches, so, naturally, I'm not really excited to be drawn here.
3. "The Undetermined Semifinal"
This matchup pits the winner of the PIG against a team that just sits there and waits to know its opponent.
Advantages: You can focus on you. The whole week, you don't have to worry about who you play, just how to get better. You can fine-tune your game so that you are ready to play your best. However, you also get involved in the spirit of the Sectional a bit earlier. In other words, if I was in this match I would go to the PIG and watch the teams play (after practice of course). That would get me mentally involved in the Sectional at least, with energy for the matchup on Saturday.
Disadvantages: The uncertainty. I think that is the big thing, you just don't know who you are playing (although you can usually guess).
Bethany History in "The Undetermined Semifinal": Since I've been coaching, we've never been drawn into this spot.
Summary
So where would I want to be drawn? Well, the optimal in my opinion is to be drawn into the PIG against a team you can beat. I like getting the Sectional underway, I like playing, I like getting the momentum going. Plus, we don't have a great history in the others, though we did win the Sectional from the "Predetermined Semi."
What do you think? What draw would you have liked? What are you hoping for this year? Does it not matter at all?
Red Velvet
I made some cupcakes today for a little gathering of women at my house this evening. I have never made a red velvet cake before, mainly because I don't like dye in my food, and the flavor can tend to be... well... let's face it... red velvet cake doesn't have much flavor. So I decided to make a red velvet cake with beet puree in it for the color so I could skip the chemical dyes. Only I didn't think it was chocolatey enough, so I added more cocoa. Problem is, when you add more chocolate you lose the red color. Soo... my "red velvets" looked a little...
...well... not very red. I tried them, and had eaten three by the time I realized I just didn't like them very much. Really good chocolate cake isn't hard to make, this just wasn't it.
Mmmm... cupcakes! They look hopeful, don't they?!
The theme of the party required red food, thus red velvet cake. So... since that didn't really work out I made chocolate ganache and strawberries with a dash of lime. And I don't care what it is, if you drench it in ganache, then it will turn out to be good. And strawberries are always the right color and yummy also!
Soo... I won't be making red velvet cake again, but it was lovely to have the ladies here. It was a fun evening.
Any excuse to celebrate,
-Carmen Rose
...well... not very red. I tried them, and had eaten three by the time I realized I just didn't like them very much. Really good chocolate cake isn't hard to make, this just wasn't it.
Mmmm... cupcakes! They look hopeful, don't they?!
Soo... I won't be making red velvet cake again, but it was lovely to have the ladies here. It was a fun evening.
Any excuse to celebrate,
-Carmen Rose
Records Update
Newcomers to the Record BooksMost Wins in First Varsity Season - #1 - Seth Krabill (16)
Most Wins in a Season - #5 - Seth Krabill (16)
Longest Winning Streak - #5 - Austin Loucks/Kyle Miller (9)
Closest Wins - Austin Loucks/Kyle Miller - 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 over Triton
Most 3rd Set Wins in Career - #3 - Austin Loucks/Kyle Miller (5)
Highest 3rd Set Win Percentage - #2 - Austin Loucks/Kyle Miller (83.3%)
Highest Games Won Percentage - #4 - Seth Krabill (68.2%)
Most Matches in a Row with a "6-0" Set - #3 - Mikey Kelly (4)
Shortest Match - #1 - Mikey Kelly (28 minutes) - #2 - Seth Krabill (30 minutes)
Individual Records for Season
Click on a name to see full individual stats.
Mikey Kelly : 7-4
Austin Loucks : 13-7
Nick Rebec : 10-8-1
Misha Rebec : 5-5-1
Claude Stickler : 8-3
Jake Gerig : 9-5
Russell Klassen : 12-8
Seth Krabill : 16-4
Ben Mast : 12-8
Kyle Miller : 13-7
Matt Ebersole : 9-9
Evan Eby : 2-3
Evan Grimes : 5-10-1
Blake Shetler : 12-7-1
Han Gil Lee : 1-1
Himal King : 0-5
Ike Lehman : 4-12
Josh Helmuth : 0-6
Ryan Minter : 3-6-1
Wade Troyer : 0-9
I'm very proud of the players from this past season. I know it is a long time since the 2009 season, like 6 months ago, but look for a season wrap-up coming the week after Spring Break. For now, you can just chew on the statistics as we start looking to improve for next year!
Wednesday Opponent Overview
All Time Record vs. Laville: 11-3
Classic Matches:
Each year we have played them head to head has been 5-0.
Top Players over the Years: Alek Schafer, Brad Miller, Trenton Stout, Chris Byers...
Last Season Result: Bethany Christian 5, Laville 0
Returning Varsity Players:
#1S - Trenton Stout (lost to Ben Mast, 2-6, 0-6)
#2S - Zach Young (lost to Seth Krabill, 0-6, 0-6)
#3S - Troy Siple (lost to Mikey Kelly, 0-6, 0-6)
#1D - Nick Amor/Dominic Lewinski (lost to Kyle Miller/Austin Loucks, 0-6, 2-6)
#2D - Grant Frick/Hunter Horvath (lost to Russell Klassen/Nick Rebec, 0-6, 0-6)
Top Returning JV Players:
None.
Outlook:
For the second year in a row, the Lancers should bring back their entire varsity. Last year, the scores indicate that we handled them pretty easily. I'm not sure what this year will hold, but this is a match that we should still win. We return enough players who won their matches this past season, that if our progress is real, and we are getting better, then we should still be ahead of the Lancers in our development.
Hope and Peanut Butter
This is Hope, she's a full blooded Border Collie and my nearly constant companion.
This evening I gave each of them an empty peanut butter jar to clean out.
It's very entertaining to watch them, because they both really love peanut butter.
The first challenge is to get the slippery jar to hold still.
Hope wants to stand on it, Misde prefers to hold it between two paws.
Then there is the very serious business of getting the peanut butter out of the jar!
And they do take this task very seriously!
Yummm...
There is a little left on the bottom, she'll get it!
Oops, got too close... Border Collie in protective mode!
num num num
Yeah, we save the peanut butter jars at our house, just so the girls can lick them out. And once they've gotten all they can reach at the top of the jar, we saw them open so they can clean out the bottom also. And don't worry, the animals and jars are parted before anyone ingests the plastic. Cheap entertainment.
It's the simple things,
-Carmen Rose
Hope wants to stand on it, Misde prefers to hold it between two paws.
Then there is the very serious business of getting the peanut butter out of the jar!
And they do take this task very seriously!
Yummm...
There is a little left on the bottom, she'll get it!
Oops, got too close... Border Collie in protective mode!
num num num
Yeah, we save the peanut butter jars at our house, just so the girls can lick them out. And once they've gotten all they can reach at the top of the jar, we saw them open so they can clean out the bottom also. And don't worry, the animals and jars are parted before anyone ingests the plastic. Cheap entertainment.
It's the simple things,
-Carmen Rose
Finally...
Painted the toe kick on my kitchen cabinets. Why did it take me so long to do this?
I like how the room is coming together. Lots of other details to come, I'll keep sharing photos as I change things.
*AND* I painted a kitchen cabinet door without realizing that I'd left a bunch of BIG DRIPS in the paint. Imagine my shock when I came in the morning, flipped the light switch and there were THOSE DRIPS! *Horrors!* I finally got that door sanded and repainted today, and who knows... I might even get it hung up where it goes! Maybe even this evening! Now wouldn't that be something!
Here's to finishing up the details,
-Carmen Rose
I like how the room is coming together. Lots of other details to come, I'll keep sharing photos as I change things.
*AND* I painted a kitchen cabinet door without realizing that I'd left a bunch of BIG DRIPS in the paint. Imagine my shock when I came in the morning, flipped the light switch and there were THOSE DRIPS! *Horrors!* I finally got that door sanded and repainted today, and who knows... I might even get it hung up where it goes! Maybe even this evening! Now wouldn't that be something!
Here's to finishing up the details,
-Carmen Rose
Tuesday Tennis Tip: Backhand Basics
Tip #1: AnticipationTip #2: Movement
Tip #3: Preparation
Tip #4: Grip
Tip #5: Stance
Tip #6: Swing
We've covered many aspects of a tennis shot, but focused on them with regards to the forehand. Many of these elements, especially those covered in anticipation, movement, preparation and swing are true of a backhand as well. However, the grip and the preferred stance are a bit different for the backhand. So here are some backhand basics.
Backhand Grip
Top Hand: An eastern forehand gripBottom Hand: A continental grip
If you look at the ridges on a tennis rackets, they are called bevels. If you start with the racquet perpendicular to the ground (as in the photo), the top ridge facing straight up is Bevel 0. Going to the right is Bevel 1, 2, 3 and so on. So, if you take the racquet, reach out with your top hand like you are shaking hands and then grab ahold, your top hand is in proper position. It should put the index finger's base on Bevel 3.
For your bottom hand, the base of the index finger should rest on Bevel 1.
This gives you a strong grip for the two-handed backhand. It should allow for proper spin and strongest balance. Remember not to hold too tightly to the racquet, as gripping it with all your might limits the power and spin that can be put on a shot.
Backhand Stance
The recommended stance for the forehand was an open stance driving forward into a natural stance. For the backhand, it is easiest to start with a natural stance and drive forward to the ball. A natural stance simply means that the back foot and the front foot are basically aligned, with your body ending up perpendicular to the net. This stance can be seen by looking at the picture on the left.
The recommended stance for the forehand was an open stance driving forward into a natural stance. For the backhand, it is easiest to start with a natural stance and drive forward to the ball. A natural stance simply means that the back foot and the front foot are basically aligned, with your body ending up perpendicular to the net. This stance can be seen by looking at the picture on the left.Backhand Swing
The backhand swing has all the same elements as the forehand swing.
#1: Drive the butt of the racquet towards the ball.
#2: Make contact at waist level slightly in front of the body (see picture)
#3: Follow through up and across body. Your hips and trunk should turn as well.
The biggest thing to remember with the backhand swing: YOUR TOP HAND IS THE DRIVING FORCE!
You should not be pulling the racquet through the zone with the bottom hand, but instead should be using the top hand as if it was a forehand. The bottom hand simply adds support. This is crucial to hitting good backhand shots, and is a mistake many beginners make. In fact, when I led my first tennis camp as a coach, we invited Trine University's head coach Bill Maddock to do a clinic for us while we were in Angola. I had always struggled with my backhand, all through high school and college. So when we were working on backhand, Bill asked which hand drove the shot: top, bottom or both? Nobody would guess, so he asked me. I truly didn't know, so I guessed. Both? I was wrong, and embarrassed, and decided I better start learning more about tennis.
The top hand drives the backhand. Remember it.
And practice, practice, practice!
#1: Drive the butt of the racquet towards the ball.
#2: Make contact at waist level slightly in front of the body (see picture)
#3: Follow through up and across body. Your hips and trunk should turn as well.
The biggest thing to remember with the backhand swing: YOUR TOP HAND IS THE DRIVING FORCE!
You should not be pulling the racquet through the zone with the bottom hand, but instead should be using the top hand as if it was a forehand. The bottom hand simply adds support. This is crucial to hitting good backhand shots, and is a mistake many beginners make. In fact, when I led my first tennis camp as a coach, we invited Trine University's head coach Bill Maddock to do a clinic for us while we were in Angola. I had always struggled with my backhand, all through high school and college. So when we were working on backhand, Bill asked which hand drove the shot: top, bottom or both? Nobody would guess, so he asked me. I truly didn't know, so I guessed. Both? I was wrong, and embarrassed, and decided I better start learning more about tennis.
The top hand drives the backhand. Remember it.
And practice, practice, practice!
Monday Morning Match Memories
It was all because the NorthWood Panthers were without a JV last year. And with that unfortunate reality, an opportunity opened up for our team. Would we be willing to fill their spot in what amounted to a Northern Lakes Conference JV Tournament? Certainly.On what was about the nicest Saturday of the tennis season, pleasant temperatures and lots of sun, Ben Mast and I drove over to Wawasee High School after a morning varsity practice to take in the JV tournament. Andrew Lanctot was the head coach at the tournament for us, and with the matches being spread over 10 courts, I knew it was going to be difficult to do any in-depth coaching.
The night before the tournament, I had announced to the team our lineup telling them that we had decided to go with a strong doubles lineup. That was true. We took our 3 seniors who were unable to crack the varsity and put them in 3 of the 4 doubles spots. So it was to my surprise as I arrived that all three singles positions had advanced to the second round, and that both doubles teams had lost!
Of course, as I gathered information, I found that #1 doubles (Misha Rebec and Claude Stickler) had lost to the eventual champions at #1 doubles. In fact, they played them closer than any of the subsequent opponents would. And Jake Gerig and Evan Grimes had lost in a tiebreak, so even these matches had been competitive.
But their was Ike Lehman, little freshman that could, entering the second round matchup against the favorite Warsaw Tigers. Before he went onto the court for his second match, Ike was worried because Gavin McGrath, his Tiger opponent, was obviously better than him. I told him he had two options against a better opponent. One, get everything back and hope he gets frustrated. Two, go for power and winners and hope you are on your game. Ike looked confused, but then chose option one. And after an hour of play in his match, he was tied at 4-4. It was one of the matches I was most proud about throughout the season. He tired a bit in the end and couldn't keep up the consistency, eventually losing 8-5. But, what I love was his ability to listen to his coach, make a decision, and give his full effort behind that.
Then there was Matt Ebersole, who played a very up-and-down tournament. First round, Matt scalded a very good player from Plymouth High School. Second round, Matt played Goshen. Now, Matt was playing #2 singles, but when we played Goshen in the season, he had played #1 singles and had won. Today, he lost the match at #2 singles. In the 3rd place game, Matt smoked Concord's #2. So, two good matches, one bad equals 3rd place. Still, another lesson learned. Consistency in level of play is as important as anything else in tennis.
And then Blake Shetler. Playing the #1 singles spot, Blake came up against Goshen in the first round and won 8-2. Then he took on Plymouth's Lane Singleton. Singleton had just taken out Northridge's AJ Thielking 8-1, and so was playing well. And Blake was too. In a great back and forth match, they traded deuces, advantages, games, and eventually Blake was able to pull out a 8-6 win. But the how was what encouraged me the most. When Blake was under pressure, he attacked! He came to the net, he upped his level of aggressiveness and actually was able to win the match with an overhead.
What is even more remarkable? He had missed an overhead for match point earlier in the game. While attacking, while being aggressive, he had an overhead to kill off the match and missed. Still, he didn't let that get him down. He asserted himself to continue doing the right thing, and it paid off with a victory.
He lost in the final to an extremely consistent player from Warsaw. But I was still glad with everyone's effort. #1 doubles ended up in 5th, and #2 doubles in 7th. All in all, we took 3rd place, behind Warsaw and Northridge. But we finished in front of Concord, Elkhart Memorial, Goshen, Plymouth and Wawasee! Nice...
And we learned lessons:
1. Listen to your coach, make a decision, and give your full effort behind that.
2. Consistency in level of play is as important as anything else in tennis.
3. Under pressure, attack!
4. When you make mistakes, keep at it
Brick Fireplace Stain
For some time I have considered my fireplace in the family room. It is brick, which is lovely, but the color of the brick was too dark, though it matches all the other brick around the place. I wanted to try to stain it lighter, but when I started to research stains, I saw the price and laughed out loud. Mercy, they DO they take themselves seriously! I had a five gallon bucket of primer (that happened to be created for masonry) a while back, used in on lots of stuff (none of which was masonry) and had some left in the bottom of the bucket. So after an absolutely unproductive week I needed *something* to justify my existence and the fireplace became my victim.
I thinned out the primer and tried a patch of brick on the side where it wouldn't show. Hmmm... not bad.
So I tried some on the front...
Weill... I think I've passed the point of no return!
Hmmm... (hubby gonna kill me!)
It took me a while to get the hang of getting it on the brick without wearing it or slopping it everywhere.
Ok, this is kind of fun. A lot like actual work, but it's making a big difference.
It's growing on me, and I started to get the hang of evening out the thin areas.
I put it all back together and stepped back. Not too bad. Certainly better than the dark brick, but I'm not sure I'm done with it. I may try to even things out or purposefully uneven things out.
One of these days I'll give build a mantle, change the floor tile and that carpet has to go! But this was a good project for another day home alone. Hubby came home a little bit ago and noticed it immediately. So that's good - it wasn't a subtle change. He hates it, though of course it's too late. But I like the change, it works in the room. And I managed to actually accomplish something today, so that's good.
I just ran across this photo of the place before we moved in... that's the fireplace.
It looks different now.
It looks different now.
Here's to Spring, inside and out!
-Carmen Rose
Friday Tourney Talk
My Top Ten Tennis State Tournament Memories#10 : DeKalb vs. Angola, 1996 : My first Sectional as a player, lost my only match and realized the intensity picks up at this time of the year.
#09 : Goshen vs. Bethany Christian, 2003 : My first Sectional as a coach, lost my first match and realized you can't win with just emotion, you have to build talent.
#08 : NorthWood vs. DeKalb, 2007 : After losing in the Sectional final to NorthWood, we went to the Regional and watched them almost beat DeKalb. That's when we knew we were an upper level program too.
#07 : Seth Troyer and Jordan Mumaw's Individual Run : Won the Individual Sectional at #1 doubles, and advanced to play LaPorte. LaPorte was 18-3 and we were 9-8, but we only lost 4-6, 4-6.
#06 : Howe Military vs. Angola, 1998 : I won 9 straight games in this first round matchup without losing a point, until I double-faulted! That's a golden set for you counting at home.
#05 : NorthWood vs. Bethany Christian, 2007 : Our first Sectional final, and a day we learned that it takes intensity and talent to win a Sectional. We fell but only 3-2.
#04 : Fairfield vs. Bethany Christian, 2008 : The match we almost choked. Take nothing for granted, we beat them 5-0 only ten days before, and were down 1-5 in a third set with a chance to lose. Thank goodness we didn't.
#03 : Goshen vs. Bethany Christian, 2007 : To reach the Sectional final, we defeated Goshen 3-2 as Johnny and Jeremy fought off three match points in a third set tiebreaker to seal our victory.
#02 : Fairfield vs. Bethany Christian, 2007 : Having lost 5-0 in the regular season, we were down 2-1 in the team match, and Jonny Shenk and Luke Hostetter were both down a set in the matches remaining on the court. Two third set comebacks later, we had defeated the Sectional favorite and won our first Sectional match.
#01 : NorthWood vs. Bethany Christian, 2008 : We caught our breath, upped our intensity and turned around the 2007 result. And we got to hold up Bethany Christian's first tennis Sectional championship, a feeling I look forward to again!
Thursday Bracketology
College basketball celebrates the fruit of its Selection Sunday, beginning today. The tournament is my most favorite Thursday of the year, although if we are drawn into the Thursday round of Sectional, that would be a close second. I love the intrigue that the brackets give, the hope of seeing a name you love on the final line, indicating them as champions. So, in honor of the NCAA Tournament, Selection Sunday, and the upcoming tourney weekend, I'm offering an inside view today of the Sectional selection process.
First of all, the site of the selection has changed in my years of coaching. When the Sectional was hosted at NorthWood, we would meet in a classroom at NorthWood High School. We would all slide into student desks and it felt really odd. I would pull out my roster and feel like I should be prepared to take notes. But there was really only one thing to write down, the outcome of the brackets. It was a strange and uncomfortable feeling, as I was nervous, inexperienced and I didn't know the other coaches all that well.
Now, I'm more relaxed, and the tournament selection site has changed. We now meet in a back conference room at Goshen High School, and that feels like a more appropriate place. All important decisions are made around conference tables right? In a dimly lit back room? Well, that's the way I imagine it.
The first part of the process is formalities, we have to make sure everybody's Sectional roster is right. The roster you submit is the roster you must play, unless an injury occurs, so it is essential to have everything figured out. This can be nerve-wracking of course. Last year, I had a bit of a dilemma. To beat Jimtown in the Sectional, we needed to have a strong singles lineup, because we had to win #2 singles to take the match. To beat Fairfield, we needed to have a strong doubles showing, because we probably needed to take both doubles matches to give ourselves the best shot. So I toyed around with different ideas to strengthen our doubles, moving Ben or Seth down to play at one of the doubles positions, hoping the other would win #1 singles... I probably wrote down 8 or 9 different lineups without even talking to any of the players. Then I decided that our best bet was to stick with what we had and hope that Jimtown and Fairfield drew each other in the first round. But in confirming your lineup, it feels like a big decision, and so you want to make sure you've examined every possibility.
And of course, you get to see the other lineups that the coaches are playing. Usually, these are fairly predictable, the lineups that they've been playing all year long. Sometimes, however, there are small changes. One year, Jimtown had suspended their #3 singles player, and it gave a glimmer of hope to us when we drew them. In fact, we ended up defeating them at that position, but couldn't pull together 2 other wins. I've often wanted to write a new name down at #1 singles, like Pete Sampras Jr. and tell all the other coaches that we just had a new transfer, just to see the reaction.
After lineups are exchanged and confirmed, the draw proceeds. The bracket is like the one above, and each team has a little ball with a number on it assigned to them. We are always #1, because they number the balls and the teams alphabetically. They put all the numbered balls into a little blue bottle, shake it up, and pour one number out into the hosting AD's hand. Whatever number it is goes on the top line of the bracket, and we proceed from top to bottom. First two teams out go against each other on Saturday morning, next two on Thursday night, and the last team waits to take on the winner of the Thursday round.
This is a nerve-wracking time, you know? I'll admit, when I'm sitting there, there are teams that I want to play and teams that I don't want to play. Last year, I was hoping to not have to play Fairfield in the first round. I was hoping for a draw that let us advance to the Sectional Final, so that even if we lost, we'd have a little taste of what playing for the title is like. In my early years of coaching, I always wanted to avoid the best teams early, because I didn't want to get blown away to end the season. But all you can do is bite your fingernails and pray. And even then it doesn't always come out like you want.
But, of course, you cannot react when your name and opponent are announced. I wanted to grimace last year when I saw us and then Fairfield. But instead, I just nodded my head like "yep, we're going to take them down." It is difficult to not let your emotions show, like in a class where you are getting a new seating chart and you seated next to the stinky kid who has Team Sports first period and never showers. You are trying to be nice.
The other funny thing is how my brain starts working on strategy right away. As soon as the AD says "line one Bethany, and they will be taking on... Fairfield," my mind starts going, "okay, now we really got to get Seth to attack Wyatt and get to the net. We can probably count on Ben defeated Malachi again, I don't know what Blake will be able to do at #3. Can #1 doubles play out of their minds and win? We should probably throw lots of different looks at them..." And on and on. Immediately, and then for the rest of the week, I think and think and think and torture myself.
The other thing about "Selection Monday"? I get to come tell all of you the results of the process after you've made your Night Out videos. Then, we get to be excited and nervous together.
You know the other thing we could be this year, other than excited and nervous? We can be confident. Confidence is simply knowing that we've worked as hard as we could throughout the season, and now we get to show that. I think that will happen too. It usually has before.
Mark Gunger on the difference between men and women
A friend sent this to me this morning, I watched it and passed it along to a few people. I don't know though... is this guy right?
What do you think?
What do you think?
Guest Bloggers
Hi All, it’s a beautiful day here at Studio B. The sky is bright blue with white whispy trails of distant jet engines trailing across the sky in parallel rows. The golf course is green and the birds are visiting the bird feeder now and then. The temperature is perfect and I have the back door standing open so that the dogs can come and go as they please. It’s quiet and beautiful!
Two weeks from today I’ll take two weeks off to attend to some health issues and would really love some guest bloggers in my absence. Since I’m so prone to hopping between art media, I thought it might be interesting to hear from my lovely guest bloggers about creating in a media they aren’t used to, or perhaps sharing a time when you blurred the lines between two art media and how it turned out. Photos are very welcome of course! So if you are interested in being one of my guest bloggers, please drop me an email at carmenrose at comcast dot net.
Thanks and Happy Creating!
-Carmen Rose
Two weeks from today I’ll take two weeks off to attend to some health issues and would really love some guest bloggers in my absence. Since I’m so prone to hopping between art media, I thought it might be interesting to hear from my lovely guest bloggers about creating in a media they aren’t used to, or perhaps sharing a time when you blurred the lines between two art media and how it turned out. Photos are very welcome of course! So if you are interested in being one of my guest bloggers, please drop me an email at carmenrose at comcast dot net.
Thanks and Happy Creating!
-Carmen Rose
Wednesday Opponent Overview
All Time Record vs. Fremont: 5-1
Classic Matches:
Fremont 4, Bethany Christian 1; 2004
I asked Bod to schedule Fremont for us, as they were in their 4th year of their program, needed some matches and were of similar size to us. And in our first matchup, they pounded us. Led by Brent Wertz, who I had been in youth group with at our church (the church where we have tennis camp), they won all the singles positions easily... and left me wondering if we should have scheduled them at all. That was the last matchup that the Eagles won.
Bethany Christian 3, Fremont 2; 2005
The following year, we returned no players that had won the previous year, as our doubles team that grabbed us one point had graduated. Fortunately, they didn't return any either, so in a battle of relative newcomers we barely prevailed. This was one of those strange matches where the overall score is close, but the matches themselves were not. We won all of our matches in straight sets, with only one close set (6-4). They won their two matches with only one close set (7-5). Weird.
Top Players over the Years: Brent Wertz, Josh Collins, George Berkesch, Dustin McHenry, Brandon Pavey, Steven Bressler
Last Season Result: Bethany Christian 5, Fremont 0
Returning Varsity Players:
#1S - Joe Stackhouse (lost 1-6, 0-6 to Ben Mast)
#2S - Matt Hoff (lost 0-6, 1-6 to Seth Krabill)
#3S - Tyler Jenkins (lost 0-6, 0-6 to Mikey Kelly)
#2D - Matt Wilcox (lost 1-6, 4-6 to Russell Klassen/Nick Rebec)
Top Returning JV Players:
#1SJV - Jacob Bryant (lost 3-8 to Misha Rebec)
#2SJV - Brandon Miller (lost 7-8 to Blake Shetler)
#1DJV - Brandin Ross/Glen McClain (won 8-7 over Matt Ebersole/Evan Grimes)
Outlook:
The Eagles are a team full of potential. Their freshman and sophomore classes are athletic and hit the ball very well, they are simply inexperienced. We had easy wins over them in singles last year, but they are a bit deceiving. Tyler Jenkins blasted his forehands and had Mikey not been such a quick mover on the court, the results might have been different. Joe Stackhouse, Fremont's #1, was in his first year at Fremont after moving, and had not yet settled in. As a team, the Eagles finished fifth out of nine in the NECC. They return a number of JV players who challenged us as well. It will be interesting to see if our matches are more difficult this year as the Eagles' players have more experience and practice in their belts.
Tuesday Tennis Tip: Swing
Tip #1: AnticipationTip #2: Movement
Tip #3: Preparation
Tip #4: Grip
Tip #5: Stance
We're moving right on through the steps to success in hitting a tennis ball. Last week, we talked about the powerful and sturdy stance and progression you make through a shot. This week, what should your swing line be?
Here are some assumptions I'm basing the following advice on. First, we are using the example stroke of a forehand. Second, you are using a semi-western grip to hold your racquet. Third, you have used proper shot preparation and are in the correct hitting stance. If you have questions about any of those, read the previous articles.
So, with that, here are 3 steps to the swing!
#1: With your racquet back low in the backswing, drive the butt of the racquet towards the ball. Imagine that you are pulling a towel through the air to hit the ball. This allows you to have better acceleration and control. Also, it will keep you from snapping your wrist or slapping at the ball.
#2: You should strive to make contact with the ball at approximately your waist level. You do not want to let the ball drop to below the knee for sure, as that takes away the power advantage that a topspin forehand gives. Additionally, you don't want to contact the ball above your shoulder area. Contact anywhere in the "core" area (chest to mid thigh) is normal and acceptable, and gives the most benefits. Of course, the opponent's shot will dictate where the ball is coming, so remember that you will have to move your feet and anticipate how to get in the correct position.
#3: After contact with the ball, your racquet should move up and through the hitting zone and you can allow your wrist and forearm to "roll-over." This should be the natural movement, so you don't have to force that. The follow-through should be high, up to around your shoulders. I find it helps to use the phrase "hug yourself" to recognize that the hitting arm is now coming across the body up to around the other shoulder.
There are swing tips for the day. Stay tuned next week for the beginnings of the backhand!
Monday Morning Match Memories
Last Thursday, in my "Rant", I brought up a new statistic for use on this site, the WRS. This stat has predicted the winner of a match at an amazing clip of 96.7%! In fact, it has only failed to predict the winner of a match once, and this Monday Morning Match Memory is about that one exception. More than that however, I want to emphasize the reason that this match was the exception.In 2007, NorthWood defeated our team twice. Both times we fell by a score of 3-2. The main problem with NorthWood was that they had a position that they were going to win every time we played. At #1 singles, Preston Swain was one of the best players in all of the area. In fact, he was voted #3 in District 2 for the All-District team. His senior year, he only lost to the District's #1 player, Deon Shafer of Warsaw. And so, entering 2008, he returned and gave NorthWood one almost unbeatable point.
So, instead of winning 3 out of 5 matches, we really had to win 3 out of 4. At all of the other positions on the team, we had won once in 2007 and lost once. We returned all of our players and NorthWood returned all but one, #3 singles. So it was a dead even match (basically) besides Preston's #1 singles point.
But while that point gave the Panthers an advantage, it also gave us motivation. I've never seen a team more dedicated in the offseason than the 2008 team. Jonny Shenk, Matthew Amstutz, Jared Schwartzentruber, Luke Hostetter, Daniel Buschert, Johnny Kauffman, Jeremy Thomas... these seniors played all the time. And not just played, they worked on their games.
I remember talking to Jared about his footwork. In 2007, he had a losing record of 10-11 on the year. In 2008, he turned in a brilliant year of 19-3, with only two losses coming in singles play. He often looked effortless in his play, gliding across the court with beautiful footwork. I asked him what changed and he said, "Well, my footwork was bad and slow and I basically never thought about it. So in the offseason, each time I'd play, I would pay attention using correct footwork, split steps, ready position, and all. By the time the season came, it was becoming second nature."
Let me translate that a bit to make it more general. Jared recognized a weakness, and he spent conscious effort on correcting the weakness. He (and all the others) worked on a lot of other things too, and I think they had a good time doing it. They knew how close they were, and that if they worked harder than NorthWood in the offseason, they could overturn the 3-2 losses into 3-2 wins.
I can't say if we "outworked" NorthWood in the offseason, but we did work! And it paid dividends throughout the season. Jared went from 10-11 to 19-3. Jonny Shenk went from 16-6 to 17-5. Daniel Buschert and Mikey Kelly went from 14-7 to 20-2!
It paid dividends against the Panthers as well. In the regular season matchup, both Jonny Shenk and the "Dominant Duo" (Daniel and Mikey) breezed through their opponents. This left us with only one position to win to take the match. Preston Swain did his part for the Panthers, winning in two sets over Luke.
So it came down to #2S and #1D. At #1D, Johnny and Jeremy charged out of the gates and took the first set but didn't sustain their energy or level of play into the second set. The third set was probably the most intense doubles I've ever seen, with both teams being aggressive, attacking, and passionate about the game. It went down to a final set tiebreaker, but we couldn't pull it out.
So it all rested on Jared and his improvement. And it was Jared's footwork that saved him. His oppenent, Panther senior Austin Hostetter, hit bullets low over the net, giving little time for reaction. The only way for Jared to win the match was to attack these shots and not run them down all day. To do that, he had to get to the shots quickly. He was on his toes, pounding the ball deep into Hostetter's back court. If he got a short ball, he moved up quickly and attacked it. Playing with such swift feet, he won the third set and sealed the match for us.
It was quite a turnaround, and it continued to the Sectional Final, which we won 4-1. The hard work, the concentration, the focus on getting better... this is how you overcome.
Catching Up on Friday
Next Monday, the Spring sports begin. Baseball players break out gloves and batting helmets, track and field members sweat off the seconds around the track, and golfers used to swing their clubs and make their putts.
What effect does playing a Spring sport have on tennis season. Obviously, playing a Spring sport takes a player away from Open Court activities... but how much does it effect? Well, in the mode of statistics, I put together this analysis.
Winning Percentages (Over my coaching career)
Those who play Spring sports: 64.2%
Those who do not play Spring sports: 59.9%
So, as you can see, those who play a different sport in the Spring have a slightly higher winning percentage in the Fall. The question is, why?
Here's my guess. Playing a sport makes discipline mandatory. You have to show up at practice, you have to work out, you have to run. Not playing a sport allows for laziness. You don't have to go to Open Courts, you don't have to work out, you don't have to stay in shape. And in our undisciplined world, many who don't play a Spring sport find many excuses to not do anything.
On the other hand, those who haven't played a Spring sport and have stayed disciplined have made amazing improvements. Over the years, Jonny Shenk, Austin Loucks, Luke Hostetter, Daniel Buschert, and many more have taken advantage of the Spring season to get on the tennis courts. And their discipline has paid off.
So the name of the game is really hard work. Playing a Spring sport demands it. So if you are lazy and not self-motivated... go play a Spring sport!
If you are not playing a Spring sport, please take advantage of the time. Come play tennis at Open Courts, go play tennis on your own, lift some weights with us. Begin your maturity process for next season by showing discipline.
I'll look forward to seeing what we all do!
Currently playing Spring sports -
Baseballers: Kyle, Russell, Ike
Track and Field: Evan
Are there others?
What effect does playing a Spring sport have on tennis season. Obviously, playing a Spring sport takes a player away from Open Court activities... but how much does it effect? Well, in the mode of statistics, I put together this analysis.
Winning Percentages (Over my coaching career)
Those who play Spring sports: 64.2%
Those who do not play Spring sports: 59.9%
So, as you can see, those who play a different sport in the Spring have a slightly higher winning percentage in the Fall. The question is, why?
Here's my guess. Playing a sport makes discipline mandatory. You have to show up at practice, you have to work out, you have to run. Not playing a sport allows for laziness. You don't have to go to Open Courts, you don't have to work out, you don't have to stay in shape. And in our undisciplined world, many who don't play a Spring sport find many excuses to not do anything.
On the other hand, those who haven't played a Spring sport and have stayed disciplined have made amazing improvements. Over the years, Jonny Shenk, Austin Loucks, Luke Hostetter, Daniel Buschert, and many more have taken advantage of the Spring season to get on the tennis courts. And their discipline has paid off.
So the name of the game is really hard work. Playing a Spring sport demands it. So if you are lazy and not self-motivated... go play a Spring sport!
If you are not playing a Spring sport, please take advantage of the time. Come play tennis at Open Courts, go play tennis on your own, lift some weights with us. Begin your maturity process for next season by showing discipline.
I'll look forward to seeing what we all do!
Currently playing Spring sports -
Baseballers: Kyle, Russell, Ike
Track and Field: Evan
Are there others?
She is... as Unique as a Snowflake
This is the lovely Laura, I'm just getting to know her and having her in the studio was fun.
She's wearing a hand dyed long wrap skirt.
And a wrap made with super soft bamboo fleece, some pearly trim and big lovely crystals dangling from the ends.
She was very patient as I airbrushed a bunch of snowflakes on her skin with a small stencil. They look really cool in person!
A vintage crystal necklace that someone gave me ages ago...
A dogwood tiara...
And lots of pearly white eye makeup.
It was a fun day in Studio C and it was fun to get to know Laura better.
Here's to the creative process,
-Carmen Rose
Thursday Rant
First off, let me say that more than angry rants, this is a day for me to talk about anything that I want. I started off this sequence last year, and I had things that I was angry about, so I called it "Thursday Rants." Now, I'm a generally happy guy with nothing to get bent out of shape over, so...
Today we're going to look at some predictors. I've done lots of interesting research over the past two weeks, looking for trends, patterns, formulas, predictors, all sorts of fun things. I was inspired by an old cartoon, but then the numbers themselves became a lot of fun.
For today, let's look at a stat that will tell us what our most difficult matches will be next year. Early in my posting season, I ranked the opponents we will play from hardest to easiest. That was before I found a way of predicting the most difficult matches. Let's see how my list matches up with this predicting statistic.
In my "eye test" ranking, I predicted the 5 most difficult matches next year would be:
1. Northridge
2. Fairfield
3. Concord
4. Westview
5. Goshen
So, that was just by looking at scores, seeing them play, knowing their coaches, predicting ability jumps, etc. Now, during the past two weeks I've worked on various patterns to see whether or not I could find one that gave some indication of what the most difficult matches would be. After going through many different ideas, here is the best one I came up with.
Whoever has the higher amount of players who won against that given opponent returning will win the following year's match.
Let me give you an example using Triton. From last year's match vs. Triton...
- We return: Ben Mast (L - #1S), Seth Krabill (W - #2S), Kyle Miller (W-#1D), Russell Klassen (L-#2D)
- They return: Jeff Ross (L-#3S), Josh Shafer (W - #2D)
If you assign a point for every winning singles player returning, and half a point for every winning doubles player returning, you get this score: Bethany - 1.5, Triton - 0.5. This would give Bethany a +1 in the stat. I'll call this calculation the "Winners Returning Stat" or the "WRS." So for the Triton match this coming year we will have a "+1 WRS."
Over the past five years, whoever wins this simple calculation wins the match 97.6%. It has only not held true once, when we defeated NorthWood in 2008 despite having a 2.5-2 disadvantage in the WRS. And many would tell you that this was one of our great matches, where we played the best, over the past 5 years.
This also tells us that this stat is not fool-proof. A team that works hard can overcome any deficit in the WRS. But it is a good indicator of what matches we will need to be ready for.
So I'm sure you are wondering by now, what are the WRS's for next year's varsity opponents? Well, here are the top 5 most difficult...
1. Northridge (-1 WRS)
1. Fairfield (-1 WRS)
1. Concord (-1 WRS)
4. Westview (-0.5 WRS)
5. Eastern (0.0 WRS)
So the only difference between my "eye test" ratings and the WRS is at #5, where Eastern replaces Goshen. We can also see that none of the WRS's are unbelievably difficult. For example, last year we had a -2 WRS against both Fairfield and Concord. We have no -2's this year. (As a side note, in 2008 we had a -2 against Concord and still almost won!)
By contrast, on the other side of things, we have five matches where we have a +3 WRS. Those matches are Mishawaka, Fremont, Laville, Prairie Heights, NorthWood and Bremen.
So, make of that what you want. This is what I'll make of it. There are still opponents that we need to work harder than. And if (or when) we defeat them, it will be a sweet cause for celebration!
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