The Blanchet Tennis Program held tryouts to make up its Varsity and Junior Varsity teams, leading them into successful two weeks of practice before their upcoming season opener against Rainier Beach.

On Monday, February 26, tryouts commenced at the Lower Woodland tennis courts. Blanchet lost a lot of upperclassman players since last year, so tryouts contained many new faces according to Varsity player Beckette Bejan.

This is the first year that Tennis became a cut sport. Consequently, it was a very competitive tryout that ultimately decided who made Varsity, JV, or no team at all. Tryouts are always a nerve-racking time, especially when you add rust to the mix.

“I was so rusty during tryouts”, said Senior Jack Heffernan. “I hadn’t really played in a whole year.”

Heffernan ended up making  the JV team, which he was on last season as well. According to Jack, the team looks even better this year, although it can be hard to tell this early in the season.

Two of the tryouts got rained out, according to senior Joey Riley. This was frustrating for players because it’s hard to showcase one’s skills when nobody can actually play.

“Tennis is kind of like baseball, so I was use to it,” said Riley. “You can’t control the weather.”

Despite the inconvenience of the weather, all of the players focused on conditioning during these sessions, which is equally important according to Bejan.

“When it does rain you have to take conditioning seriously,” said Bejan. “It will directly translate to how you move and play on the court.”

After tryouts concluded and decisions were made on who made what team, JV tennis, coached by Tom Suarez, began practicing at Lower Woodland everyday after school.

The competitive nature of tryouts didn’t settle down at practice. According to freshman player Connor Stockamp, there are 10 boys on the team and only 8 get to play in the first match against Rainier Beach. To decide who will perform and who will compete against who in the first match, a ladder is formed by coach Suarez.

“We play challenge matches to 4 sets”, said Stockamp in an interview. “They are how we establish the ladder for our team”.

In this way Tennis is a very individual sport. A player must compete against his/her teammates directly for a higher spot on the ladder. This kind of pressure can sometimes be tough according to Heffernan.

“It’s easy to get rattled and get in your own head,”said Heffernan. “You’ve got to stay focused if you want to do well”.

The team ladder has yet to be set for the team’s first game against Rainier Beach on Tuesday, March 13.