12s and 14s travel to Wichita Falls

Austin Tennis Academy’s top 12s and 14s traveled to Wichita Falls this past weekend, where they competed in the Echometer Super Championship Major Zone. Led by coaches Notis, Martinez and Houston, the ATA team went north to test their hard work against the best the state has to offer.

After dropping his first match in the boys’ 12s draw, Matthew Milliken won three rounds to reach the consolation semifinals. He beat A. Pandey 7-6(3), 6-3 in the consolation quarterfinals Conor O’Meara won his first round match 6-4, 6-4 to reach the second round.

“Conor played with great energy and fought hard for a first round win,” coach Notis said.

Jake Berber beat Prince Gbodamosi 6-1, 6-3 in his second match to earn a spot in the third round of consolation.

“Jake played smart and aggressive using his full array of weapons to frustrate his opponents and deal with the wind,” coach Notis said.

Payton Holden faced the tough task of taking on two teammates after falling in his first match. He beat Dylan Ritter 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of consolation, only to advance and face Ben Smith. Payton and Ben battled for three sets with Payton prevailing in the end, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3. Zane Ritter earned valuable experience competing in two high-level matches over the weekend.

“Zane showed great progress in his game constructing points and serving well,” coach Notis said.

In the girls’ 12s draw, Maggie O’Meara, the number one seed, won three straight matches without dropping a set. She beat M. Rabson, the number five seed, 6-1, 7-5 to reach the semifinals. Allie Burak battled to beat M. Antohi 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in a tough first round match.

In the girls’ 14s A draw, Brittney Brewster beat A. Dickens 6-2, 6-0 to reach the round of 16. Sydney Young rallied after a tough first round loss to earn four wins and a spot in the consolation finals. Young took down A. Piranian 6-1, 6-2 in the consolation semifinals. Courtney Schulte competed hard in two tough matches on the weekend. Nicole Karaklis won three straight matches after her first round, to earn a place in the consolation semifinals. She beat K. Garland 6-2, 6-2 in the consolation quarterfinals.

The west Texas wind was a challenge for ATA’s 12s and 14s, and they faced it head on.
“It was brutal,” coach Notis said. “Our players did a really good job of dealing with the conditions. They competed hard and had a good attitude about it.”