The Kosciusko Community YMCA Racquet Center is looking to improve the tennis played in Warsaw.
Following a summer which saw the YMCA offer its first United States Tennis Association Tournament trips, it is now offering year-round leagues to allow players to hone their skills at as young as five years of age."This is going to start a new foundation for tennis growth in Warsaw," KCYMCA Tennis Director Robb Julian said of the new programs beginning at the center.
Starting with the new QuickStart program, which helps develop players 8 and Under, as well as 10 and Under, running all the way up to USTA Junior Tournament Tennis, Julian is optimistic that tennis in Warsaw can go to another level.
"Anyone that's between 5 and 18 has a league to be in this fall," Julian said. "If you want to be in tennis, there's a place to do it."
The Racquet Center will hold try-outs for its QuickStart and USTA Junior Tennis this Saturday, with leagues begining Sept. 6. QuickStart try-outs will be from 9 a.m. to noon, with Junior Tennis try-outs from 3 to 5 p.m.
According to Julian, Warsaw's initiation of QuickStart will make it the only location in northern Indiana that is offering a new way for young players to learn the game.
"Fort Wayne will eventually offer it, but we're the first program in Northern Indiana to offer the actual QuickStart league," Julian said. "It will also be one of the first in the state of Indiana to offer it."
What makes QuickStart different is the way it teaches the game.
Rather than having kids take three years of classes before engaging in competition, QuickStart allows them to take an hour of lessons, then compete for an hour on smaller courts, using smaller rackets and a larger, foam ball with low compression.
"Fifth grade basketball players don't play on the same size courts as the Olympics," Julian explained. "Tennis is finally picking up on what other team sports have been doing for some time."
Instead of playing on regulation courts, players 8 and Under will have compete on 36-foot by 18-foot courts. To better illustrate the court sizes, two fit on one side of a regulation court, while another two fit on the other. For 10 and Under players, larger racquets are used, with balls more similiar to regular ones, while the court is still slightly smaller than normal, at 60-foot by 21-foot for singles.
"It's for any level of player who can get the ball over the net," Julian said of QuickStart. "It's how the USTA would prefer to attract new players to the game."
Julian explains that QuickStart has been utilized overseas for some time, which may explain why Americans are lagging behind in international tournaments lately, such as the U.S. Open, which has been won by Switzerland's Roger Federer the last four years and is currently under way in New York.
"Currently, kids don't play their first tournament until after three years of solids lessons," Julian said. "It can be hard to practice three years and then play a game.
"We have a very committed group at the junior level, but they've never gotten to play," he added.
On top of improving their play by getting into immediate competition, Julian also believes the adjusted equipment is a big help.
"The balls move slower and bounce slower," Julian said of the low compression balls used. "This helps the kids use correct form."
At Saturday's try-outs at the Racquet Center, Julian and others will evaluate the players and create fairly matched teams. The teams will then begin play every Saturday between Sept. 6 and Oct. 19.
The try-outs will not only help to evaluate the kids, but parents will also get a lesson.
"The leagues with the most success have had parent participation," Julian said. "On the try-out date, parents should be prepared for a three-hour USTA clinic on basic tennis practice."
The skills learned by the parents will then be used on the children. In QuickStart, parents are encouraged to have a heavy hand in teaching their children not only in practice, but also during the matches.
"The whole purpose is learning," Julian said.
The cost for QuickStart is $60 for YMCA members and $80 for non-members.
Junior In-House Tennis
Along with QuickStart, the Racquet Center is also holding try-outs for its Junior Tennis Saturday between 1 and 3 p.m.
Junior Tennis is played on full courts, with full-sized tennis balls for players between 8 and 18 years of age.
"It follows USTA Junior tennis guidelines," Julian said. "It's going to meet every Saturday and play for two hours. The kids get to play a lot of matches."
The seven-week Junior Tennis program, allows any level of player to participate at the Racquet Center. Teams will be decided at Saturday's try-outs, with enough players delegated to each team to at least supply a boys single, girls single, boys doubles and girls doubles.
"Whether you're in high school or a beginner, you can come out and play," Julian said.
"You could run into a tougher player, or you could run into a beginner," he added.
Even though you may sign up for the league, Julian realizes that not everyone may be able to participate each Saturday. Because of that, teams pay $65 per match, with whoever's playing that day splitting up the cost.
"We welcome all," Julian said. "It offers a way to play without travelling to tournaments."
Junior Travel Leagues
The Junior Tennis program allows players to play in tournaments at the Racquet Center, but for those who don't mind travel, there's the Junior Team Tennis Travelling League.
"This league is for anyone who feels they're ready for more serious competition," Julian said of the league which has boys and girls playing on the same team as well as Junior In-House.
The travel league begins play Oct. 16 and is split into two separate groups. Age groups 14 and Under, 12 and Under, as well as 10 and Under begin play in October, travelling between Warsaw, Goshen and Fort Wayne for Saturday matches. In November, 16 and Under and 18 and Under players begin play.
The cost for the travel team is $32 per team, and members must also be USTA members. If not a USTA member, players can go to the USTA Web site at www.usta.com to pay the $18 annual fee to become one.
Junior Tournament Tennis
This psummer, the Racquet Center began taking players to USTA Summer Tournaments around the state.
"We want to give kids an opportunity to travel all year round," Julian said.
"We had a dedicated group that played tennis pretty consistently," he added.
Through the summer, the group played in seven tournaments, with many earning USTA junior rankings along the way.
"Instead of attending another tennis class with no competition coming, they're able to play in tournaments," Julian said.
Among the ranked players travelling with the Racquet Center were (Northern Indiana rankings) Deon Shafer (boys 18 singles, No. 7), Bryce Scott (boys 18 singles, No. 17), Brenton Reyner (boys 14 singles, No. 31), Rex Alley (boys 10 singles, No. 7) and Kandi Kesler (girls 16 singles, No. 63).
"These kids are taking play past the starter level," Julian said. "They're taking their tennis to a much more competitive level."
By travelling to tournaments, Julian believes the higher competition is vastly improving the players.
"The competition at tournaments is much better than you'll see at a high school match," he said.
The players who embark on these tournaments enjoy playing all year round, and their play is evidence of that. And with more kids getting involved with the programs, tennis may be going to another level in Warsaw.
"Warsaw is doing good, but it's going to do better," Julian said.
Questions on how to sign up for QuickStart or any of the new programs at the KCYMCA Racquet Center may be directed to Julian at 574-268-9622 or rjulian@prrfc.com
