NOCTILUCA June 2016

SPORTS Appleton, Wisconsin June 2016 Vol. XXI Issue III

Page 12

By Fatima Ali and Brennan Arnold Boys’ Tennis focuses on mental toughness for matches

is a very accessible game. Players can come from all different social circles and can start playing at any skill level. Sometimes team sports can seem very aloof to new players. Tennis isn’t like that. Even those of us who have been playing for a long time enjoy playing alongside those who are picking up the game for the ¿ rst time. We like playing tennis because everyone has fun.” Furthermore, most boys on the tennis team agree that people should come to tennis meets because it is one of the most engaging sports to watch as a spec- tator. Often, players feel that the spectators can have a real impact on the out- come, providing the energy needed to pull out a tough match. Looking towards the state tournament in Madi- son this year, Burt com- ments, “We have many places on the team that I feel if we keep on improving, we can make some waves during the sectional tourna- ment. I have no doubt, we will have players compet- ing for a state berth.” Grimmer agrees, by op- timistically stating, “I think everyone de ¿ nitely has a great chance to compete in state this year because we have worked through so many obstacles together which have made us better tennis players.” “I think everyone de ¿ - nitely has a great chance to compete in state this year because we have worked through so many obstacles together which have made us better tennis players.”

In regards to their athletic standpoints, Nelson hopes to build himself up to be- come a General Manger for For Floodstrand, her fa- vorite memory has to be her ¿ rst ever plane ride en route to Florida. “This year I loved going down to Florida for spring break the weather was gorgeous and despite not winning any of the games down there we got to see some really great competition.” As the season winds down, the Appleton North Boy’s Varsity tennis team remains hopeful that they will end the season on a high note. The team ¿ n- ished strong with 5th place in conference with a record of 4-4, according to the FVA Sports website. Although there have been many rough patches during the season, include a 0-2 losing record at the begin- ning of the season, as well as several minor injuries during practice as a result of misjudgments when feeding and returning balls, the boys tennis team is de- termined to continue the ¿ ght, as they embark on sub-sectionals. “The most dif ¿ cult part of the season is the gaunt- let we play in our confer- ence. The FVA is so strong in tennis, that there is never a match you can take off. On your worst day, any- body can beat you, and on your best day, you can beat anybody,” Coach Scott Burt said. “In order to perform our very best on match day, we worked on developing mental toughness Tennis is such a mental game and we worked on how we react when adversity in a match strikes. There is such lim- ited time to get yourself out of a bad mind-set, so you have to have a mental edge over your opponent. Before a match I always say “Play smart, play hard”. There is no time limit in ten- nis, so even if you are down 6-0, 5-0, you are always in a position to climb back into “Beating UNC (Universi- ty of North Carolina) when College Gameday was there this past February.”

Number Two Doubles players Tyler Grimmer (left) and Brennan Arnold (right) celebrate a ¿ rst place ¿ nish at the Terror Invite on April 3rd. The boy’s tennis team placed ¿ fth at the FVA conference tournament this year with a 4-4 record. Photo Courtesy of Sara Arnold

the match. You play hard until the ¿ nal point, and the best way to get back into a match is to play smart ten- nis and not let your emo-

pull off a 3 set win against a state caliber team to give us a 4-3 team victory.” Even when the boys have a spectacular win dur- ing a match, Burt always mentions, “That was good, not great. But hey, a win’s a win. We’ll take one wher- ever we can get one.” Burt explains that this means whether the win was a close match or blowout, there are always things to improve on. It is important that even in wins, the players look at themselves to see what they can still do better. They like to talk about the good things they can do, but to take the next step, they have to keep working on their weaknesses. The varsity line up for singles includes, Benji Backer as one singles, An- drew Wilks as two singles, Deepak Vir as three singles, and Anthony Wendel as Floodstrand believes “For incoming freshmen partici- pating in college athletics I think my advice would be to brace yourself and get ready for a crazy ride. Stay posi- tive and work as hard as you can and do whatever any of your teammates or coaches ask you to do, and remember if and when times get hard, realize that there aren’t very many people that make it to this point in sports so you need to enjoy it and not take it for granted.”

four singles. Meanwhile, the doubles lineup includes Mac Bagwell and Brad Pen- nings as one doubles, Bren- nan Arnold and Tyler Grim- mer as two doubles, and Emil Mostrom and Alex Gowing as three doubles. A vital element of prac- tice included regular weight training, in order to im- prove their physical con- ditioning which eventually really showed on the court. They also practiced a lot of techniques and strate- gies for conquering tough matches. “In practice, we drill a lot,” said Tyler Grimmer, sophomore. “The using the changes and adjustments we made to our serves, vol- leys, or returns, we play matches to use what we learned in those drills.” When asked why ten- nis is a fun sport to be in, Mac Bagwell, junior, re- sponded by saying, “Tennis

“On your worst day, anybody can beat you, and on your best day, you can beat anybody.” - Mr. Scott Burt

a NBA team while Flood- strand hopes to become a high school social worker. For incoming college fresh- men choosing to participate college athletics, they have strong words of encourage- ment. Nelson believes, “It is sig- ni ¿ cantly more dif ¿ cult to balance athletics and aca- demics than in high school, but if you really love the sport and are dedicated to your academics, you will have an experience with both.” I was especially proud of our guys recovering after a tough loss to Kimberly. We lost 4, three set matches to Kimberly, where I felt like we mentally crumbled. We had a very to the point con- versation after that match about mental toughness. We responded by playing very well against Oshkosh North where our #1 doubles team of Mac Bagwell and Brad Pennings were able to tions get the best of you.

Floodstrand , alumni re À ection on current and future endeavors

Austin Nelson, far right, poses with fellow Virginia Managers and ESPN Game day Analyst Jay Wil- liams. Nelson enjoys the atmosphere of Virginia Basketball. Photo courtesy of Austin Nelson