One, Two, Three...

7 matches in 36 hours! I am surprised that I didn't have to be propped up to take this picture. 3rd place in the 30s Singles division. Not too bad!

Because of the small draws in all of the divisions, play did not begin until Saturday morning. I spent the night with relatives in a suburb northwest of Chicago, so Saturday morning I had a two hour drive to the tournament site. I wanted to use the time driving to the match to focus on my goals. I participated in three divisions of the Midwest Adult Championships; women's 30s singles, women's open singles and women's open doubles. For the open divisions, I simply wanted to play the best tennis I was capable of against the younger, harder hitting opponents I was likely to be facing. With my league teams advancing to the playoffs, I wanted to be able to play this boot-camp style tennis, getting as many matches in as possible before next weekend. In the 30s event, I wanted to win as many matches as possible in order to earn ranking points because this event would add points to my national ranking.

There are times when despite your best efforts, it may not be meant for you to win. This is a lesson, I have resisted learning all season long. I went 18-3 this summer in singles during USTA league play and despite that being a very good record, I have focused on the losses, obsessed about the failures and generally beat myself up afterwards for 'what went wrong'. Of the three losses, realistically, there was only one match where the outcome was within my control. But I have really taken losses hard this year.

So Saturday, despite my best intentions, did not start the way I would have liked it to. I was sick to my stomach on the drive to the match. When I got to the tournament site, because of the rain, play had been moved inside and 9 o'clock matches were put on as soon as both players arrived at the indoor facility. So mentally prepared for a 9 o'clock start, I was not prepared to go on at 8:15. And even though my stomach had settled, butterflies began to return. I hadn't had a chance to eat because of the upset stomach. The day before I had practiced under the same circumstances of not eating and had gotten extremely dizzy ten minutes into the drills, so the thought of not eating occupied my mind during the five minute warm-up.

I started the match by losing my service game. I managed to hang in the match for the next six games before I was broken again. My opponent never lost her serve. In the beginning of the second set, I began to notice slight cramping, but it never really affected my play, so I ignored it, instead trying to keep my goal in mind; play the best points I can. I was happy with my first round loss, because I was happy with my play.

Then came my second match, one hour after my first one finished...

The cramping was almost immediate. Despite having come close to ODing on potassium, both pills and bananas, and chugging gatorades one after the other, nothing would alleviate the cramping. By the second set of a 1-6, 0-6 loss, I couldn't even manage to swing at balls that were merely a foot away. There was a huge indentation in the bicep of my hitting arm that formed a near perfect 'V' in the middle. After the match when I went to stand on my toes, several of them curled like the ribbons on a birthday present. Never had I experienced something like that and on top of everything, I had lost my opening match in the 30s singles, the one event where I wanted to win.

Eventually, the cramping went away. The bananas and the pills begin to do their jobs and I was able to play a third singles match and a doubles match that afternoon without incident.

I've talked about my doubles partner before, a thirteen-year old who is preparing to play pro events next year when she turns 14 in order to be exposed to hard hitting players. I've watched her a lot this summer demolishing some players and losing to others with obvious less talent. I always ask her what happened after her losses and she always responds with the same smile and shrug. I admire how the losses never stick with her. But when talking to her and her father, I understand; win or lose, the goals are being met; being aggressive on points, hitting a good, deep, hard ball. Her success isn't measured in wins or losses.

I started playing tournaments to improve my game. I wanted to hit with people who hit the ball hard. I wanted to find the best competition and do my best while competing. There was a time when that meant success for me, when I was just happy to be on a court playing an opponent who hit with pace and didn't junk up every single shot that came my way.

I left the tournament late Sunday afternoon having won 3 matches and loss 4. I was runner up in the Open Consolation Singles Finals, third place in 30s singles, and 2nd place with Ty Ana in Open doubles.

I got to drive two hours by myself to my relatives to pick up my mom and my nephew before heading home. During that alone time, I reflected on my tournament.

I really do love playing these tournaments. I'd been on the fence about attending the National 30s Clay Court tournament in Florida in November. There's the expense, the lack of experience on clay, and my plunging confidence. But Sunday, I felt renewed.

The first goal is to do my part in getting one of my playoff bound teams to nationals! To do that, I need to just play the best tennis I am capable of, not worrying about who is on the other side of my net. My mom often reminds me that my opponent is not on the other side of the net. My opponent is in my head.

My second goal is to prepare for the Midwest Open Series tournament in Cincy at the end of August. That is a time for me to play my best and have fun with Ty Ana.

My third goal is to prepare for the next sectional tournament which is the first weekend in October.

One, Two, Three...

Stay tuned,
KS

Districts! Here We Come!

Well, both my day and night teams clinched playoff berths Tuesday with match wins. I have played every single match for both teams at number one singles and am so proud of our results.



I played last summer with the day team and we came one match short of advancing to the post season, so I am thrilled that we were able to come back stronger this year. My night team is comprised of a group of ladies, the majority of whom made it to Nationals last year. I am happy this team made it to playoffs, too, because it was a HUGE decision for me to play with them. The captain of the team asked me to play, but joining that team meant leaving a group of friends I had a blast playing with in the years before. Even after I made the decision to join my night team, I struggled with my decision, worrying if I had made the right one. I left my old team to join a team that I thought would be more competitive. The goal of the team from the start was to advance beyond the regular season and every person on the team seemed to buy into that goal. They were competitive and I wanted to play on a team that was serious about competing sans the drama that can sometimes exist on teams whose primary goal is not "having fun". I didn't know anyone on the new team with the exception of the captain. I live on the east side, so the drive to the practices twice a month during the winter provided me plenty of time to second guess my decision. Whatever sport I do, I like to have fun while I am doing it. Otherwise, why do it? The practices for the team were fun and I began to know my teammates a little more, but the process was slow, considering I was only seeing them twice a month. Before the season started, I missed my old team.



At some point, I stopped worrying about it and my conflicting thoughts sort of just floated away, but Tuesday after clinching a spot in the playoffs, it dawned on me that I had made the right decision.



I love my team. They are so supportive. I play singles so

Running

I hate running, but I do it so I am not sucking wind on the court, ice or soccer field.

I haven't done any running for about a month now because of allergies and respiratory and sinus infections. I did a 2.5 mile run on Friday and then today I did a 4.5 mile run. OMG! I felt like I almost died. But I got through it and next run will be easier...hopefully.

Stay tuned...
KS

Six Month Plan

Success at this year's Midwest Open Series tourneys was not what I expected. I've been playing well and hoping to qualify as a singles player for the end of the summer exhibition tournament August 20-22nd in Cincinnati, OH.



Last year I was an alternate, who missed the opportunity to play thanks to my invite letter being lost by the US Postal Service. This year, I was determined to work harder, be better, and qualify outright. But tougher draws, nagging allergy problems, sinus/ear infections, so many reasons why I didn't compete my best in singles this summer. However, I did qualify for doubles with my doubles partner, Ty Ana.



I am so excited and once again, amped up to work hard. I have six weeks to prepare to play the most important tournament so far in my young tennis career. The Midwest Open Series Championships are basically an exhibition tournament held on the grounds at the same time as the US Open Series Cincinnati tournament.



I've mentioned before about being goal-oriented and needing that feeling of working toward something tangible. I need that picture on my wall, so when I get up every morning, I am reminded, 'this is the reason I dragged myself out of bed to run' or 'this is the reason I played tennis with that guy who's able to bagel me in six sets in less than an hour'. I came across a quote recently that I absolutely fell in love with; "Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character."



So, true. When I came back from California, never have I felt so accomplished as a tennis player and all of that is due to the work I put in beforehand. I trained harder than I've ever trained from anything, so I got in better shape. My game improved in ways I never thought possible. I gained confidence in my game.



So the next goal is to compete as well as I can in Cincinnati. I have a two tourneys to play between now and then and I am gearing up to play the USTA league post season with both my day and night teams in first place in their respective flights. There are practice matches to play and the never-ending work to improve that flawed volley! I want to be at my best. I want to surprise both myself and my thirteen year old partner with how well I play! There's morning runs to complete (something I've been neglecting because of both allergies and laziness). The plan is to compete to the best of my ability every time I step on a court between now and August 20th, the continue working on the "technical difficulties" of my game, and to better my stamina.

I will let you know how it turns out.

Stay tuned...
KS

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

Sometimes relationships aren't meant to stand the test of time and in tennis it's no different.

I've found myself having to polish off that eon-old speech that starts, "Well, it's not you. It's me..." Lately, a series of tennis habits have left me physically and mentally drained. Instead of looking forward to hitting sessions, I was beginning to dread them. Instead of looking forward to competing against a certain team or opponent, I felt apprehensive. Packing for a tournament, something I used to do days in advance, was done begrudgingly hours before departure time.

We've all had doubles partners were you just don't seem to click. Those are the partnerships easy to walk away from. Things never seemed like the good fit of a perfect pair of jeans, so it's easy to move on.

But there are other partnerships, associations, obligations, that make walking away difficult, where one of the people involved isn't as quick to realize that it is time to move on. Several of my tennis buddies have recently confessed to me, "I don't really like hitting with her/him, but I don't want to hurt their feelings." In theory, the honesty is the best policy, but who wants to hear; you cheat at line calls when it doesn't matter, so I don't want to hit with you. You're cool, but your mom is a psychopath and if she yells through the fence one more time from her bird-dogging position, I am going to purposely miss-hit a tennis ball right at her big mouth. Or, I would hit with you, but you coaching me when you just picked up a racquet three days ago isn't working for me. Or, if you can't say something sympathetic after a loss, then GO AWAY!

It's taken me a long time to realize that what I need out of a tennis relationship is just as important as what the other person needs. It should be symbiotic. There are people I love playing doubles with. Win or lose on the court, I leave feeling like I've had the time of my life. One of my favorite doubles partners, and I have many, is a teenager from Chicago. I strive to be like this thirteen-year old, who plays her ass off on the court yet is able to wipe the memories of a loss away with one swipe of a towel. At some point, her skills, already light years ahead of mine, will outgrow our partnership. I think we both realize that, but for now, it is fun, what it should be. We got routed our last match together, which was reminiscent of our first match together. The ones in between had become competitive and fun, so much so that I drove to Columbus to play a tourney with her where our first round opponents were far more accomplished than we were. But playing with her has been a blast.

On the flip side, there's a partner I've played with once. And it was a nightmare. I don't want to play with this partner ever again. I don't want to try to work it out. I don't want it to get better. I just don't want to play doubles with this partner. But instead of saying that, I've made excuses. (I'm focusing on singles. Playing singles and doubles with be too taxing on my delicate respiratory system. Playing doubles throws off my singles game.)

Tennis should be fun. If it's not fun, why do it? For all of it's costs and exerted energy and frustrating moments, if it's not fun, why do it?

For the rest of my 2010 season, my goal is to put the fun back in tennis. I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

Stay tuned,
KS

Returning Home

Yesterday was the biggest disappointment I think I've ever had in tennis and my greatest accomplishment. I played and lost the third place championship match at the National Women's Indoor Tournament in Sacramento, CA.

It has been a long time since I felt that devastated after a loss and of course, my exit from the court couldn't have been quicker. I was up 3-0 in the first set. I was hitting the ball as well as I've ever hit the ball and then, as tends to happen to me at times, I decided to play cautious, which cost me the match. It's weird how even though that is my tendency and even though my part of my mind knows that is not a good strategy the part of my mind which controls my body totally decides to ignore reason. I am working on this and might, soon, enlist the help of a trained sports psychologist.

But it only took a few seconds to be reminded by everyone who helped me get to CA, that it was okay. That rarely does success come on the first try. That I did try when so many others are too chicken to. And that fourth place isn't something horrible that should have me reduced to endless tears.

Thank you, to all of you who believed in me and didn't laugh when I told you that I was going to play a national tournament, someone who'd never played as a child and who'd learned 60 percent of what she knew about tennis by reading books. For a second when I was on the court, I felt alone. And I never felt that way before because I had always traveled with people who were quick to show me encouragement. Without that, I had to reach down and try to remember that there are so many of you back home in Michigan (where trust me, they are laughing at us in CA, wondering how in the world do we play tennis in foul-weather Michigan), believing in my and wishing me success.

I annoyed Mark in the weeks coming to the tournament, "If I don't win any matches, will you think that I failed? Or that it was a wasted trip?"

Always quick to reassure, he always answered with his own question, "Will you think it was a wasted trip?"

The absolute best part was that I played a match with a chair umpire, who announced me and where I was from. He called the score and corrected calls and I felt so much like a champion. If only they would have provided ball kids, I think I would have been in tennis heaven.

So, no. I don't think it was a wasted trip.

Stay tuned...(Because I think there is a national clay tourney coming up : )

KS

First Match

OMG! I am in CA playing in a National Tournament. Though the draw is small because evidently women between the ages of 30 and 35 have better things to do, I am so glad I entered.

I am thinking that somehow my reputation for a meanie preceded me. My first round opponent withdraw as my plane was touching down, so bye in the first round. Yea, me!

I was disappointed because I knew the competition would be tough, but I really wanted to kick off my USTA season with the best tennis possible and I thought I would be able to get that in a national tournament.

It annoys me when people roll their eyes at my Pollyanna-outlook, but the fact that my opponent dropping out meant that I would face the number one seed in my first match, was not as earth-shattering as you might think. I am very pragmatic about mostly everything and the thing is, I did EVERYTHING I could to prepare for this match. I ran when I hate running. I worked out when I didn't want to. I played tennis against some rather cocky and rude Big Bangers who enjoyed kicking my butt whenever I would allow. So the only thing I could do here was my best. I couldn't have done anymore.

And so it was proven in my first match which I lost 1-6, 0-6.

The woman I played was a player ranked 5.5, which as far as I can tell, they rank her that as a warning to everyone who comes near her on the court. Kind of like a high voltage sign is there for your protection.

She was a very experienced player who'd spent ten years on the pro circuit. There's always something to take out of the match and what I found was that I wasn't out played. I could hold my own. I aced her a few more times that she aced me. She blazed winners by me at the same speed I blazed them by her. The difference was her experience. She seemed to be that smart kid in class, who has all the answers before the teacher ever asks the questions.

But I wasn't outplayed.

Back when I first picked up a racquet and there was nothing about my game worth watching, a teaching pro told me that I would be hard pressed to find another woman who could outhit me. He said that I had the power and once I learned the game I would be great.

I've believed that all this time, but this match was like a confirmation.

At any cost, I play doubles today. Hopefully, it will be fun. I have not played doubles really with my travelling partner so all I can hope for is fun, to work on some things and to get some more tennis in.

Tomorrow morning I play for the third place bronze ball. My opponent is a psycho who tried to cheat her way through her semi final match this morning, so I look forward to her theatrics.

Stay tuned...

KS