My students travel to College Station

The super championship qualified players traveled to College Station to take on the top 16s and 18s players that Texas has to offer. Coaches Newman, Strecker, and Collins accompanied the team to compete in the Bryan College Station Super Champ Major Zone this past weekend.

In the boys’ 18s A draw, Blake Davis battled to beat R. Bader 6-7, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the semifinals. There he faced the number five seed W. Oliver, where he logged his second three set win, 6-2, 6-7, 6-3.
“Blake showed great fight and played with great spirit in reaching the finals,” coach Newman said.
Jeff Offerdahl worked for two wins before falling to the number three seed, 6-4, 6-1. He beat S. Griffin 6-2, 6-3 to reach the round of 16. Jonathan Stockdale dropped his first round match before withdrawing with a back injury. Chase Curry won two tough three set matches to reach the round of 16.

In the girls’ 18s B draw, Brooke Hughes battled through two tough matches to earn a spot in the semifinals. Entering as the number four seed, Hughes beat M. Hudson 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 in the quarterfinals to reach the final four.

In his second match in the boys’ 18s B draw, Donny Hackett played Taylor Cooper in two tough sets, ultimately going down 7-6, 6-4.

Claire Cahill beat Brittany Thompson 6-3, 6-1 in her first match in the girls 16s A draw. Next she faced Kelli Hine who got the best of her in a highly competitive match, 6-2, 7-5.

In the girls’ 16s B draw, Kate Cahill earned two tough wins to reach the round of 16 beating Leah Smith 7-5, 6-4 in her second match.

“Kate played inspired tennis,” coach Collins said. “She fought hard for every single point, really earning both of her wins.”

In the boys’ 16s A draw, Chris Dale fought to earn five straight wins and a spot in the finals.

“This was a breakout tournament for Chris,” coach Newman said.

Josh Hagar beat J. Leonik 6-7, 6-1, 6-2 for his second win and spot in the third round, where he faced teammate Dale. Taylor Shamshiri, the number five seed, defeated D. Weiner 2-6, 7-6, 6-1 to reach the round of 16. After a first round loss, Charlie Shin bounced back to earn two wins and a spot in the consolation quarterfinals. He defeated A. Frye 6-2, 7-6 for his second win. Matthew Sparks competed hard in two tough matches on the weekend.

Aaron Chaffee reached the finals of the boys’ 16s B consolation, winning three matches along the way. Esteban Kaufman beat K. Cassady 7-6, 6-4 to reach the round of 32. Conor O’Rourke worked to earn two wins on the weekend and a spot in the round of 16. Rob Steinwedell competed hard in his two matches, playing through the pain of a recent injury.

In order to succeed against this high level of competition, one must first be able to adjust to changing weather. While the freezing fall wind made things tough at times, the ATA juniors played with maturity and poise, earning successful results in College Station despite the less than ideal conditions.