Lady Eagles’ Tennis Have a Full Week Ahead!

“Said I wanna fly like an eagle, to the sea , Fly like an eagle let my spirit carry me, I wanna, Fly, Fly right into the future.” ~By: Seal

“I believe I can fly
I believe I can touch the sky
I think about it every night and day
Spread my wings and fly away
I believe I can soar
I see me running through that open door
I believe I can fly.”

~R. Kelly

(From the Space Jam movie Soundtrack)

The Bridgewater women’s tennis team has a full week of matches ahead beginning Wednesday April 7^th against Roanoke at home. This weekend we have a double header at home against conference opponent Hollins University and non conference St. Mary’s. Sunday we travel to Pennsylvania to finish off the busy week against Elizabethtown!

The Lady Eagles have won four of the last five conference matches! We have beaten Guilford, Emory and Henry, and Lynchburg in the last few weeks all with the same 8-1 score. The women have been playing some of the best doubles and singles that we have played all season and things seem to be falling into place at the perfect time in the season to peak. With the upcoming challenging conference matches, we will find out how much hard work can pay off.

Against Guilford, our team played the strongest tennis we have played all year. Going into the match, we all expected there to be several close matches by looking at our past results with Guilford. We all stepped up and played great tennis and won by a lopsided margin, 8-1. Many of us have had very close matches with these girls in the past and seeing our improvement from last fall or last year to this spring really shows just how much the hard work and conditioning indoors during those wintry weeks can pay off in the long run. I look forward to seeing how well we match up against Roanoke and Hollins this week after having some tough matches against them in the fall season.

Our men’s team has also been playing some great tennis winning 4 of their 5 last conference matches as well, losing only to nationally ranked Washington and Lee just as the women did.

As much as I love playing tennis, I love just as much spending time on the road and at home matches with my teammates on both the men’s and women’s team. Last week on the way to Lynchburg we watched Space Jam and everyone sang the awesome soundtrack songs like “Fly Like an Eagle” and “I Believe I can Fly” as they were played on the movie and we got to see former teammate and one of my close friends, Marlena, while at Lynchburg. I just love being around the people on the team and cherish the relationships built from years past. I look forward to the exciting weeks of tennis ahead but as a senior I will truly miss all of the great experiences and memories that I’ve had here! It will be a bittersweet ending to a great adventure! (Also, thanks to Mrs. Stone for making everyone Easter peanut butter filled chocolate eggs and to the Radke’s for their endless supply of Gatorade!! The amazing parental support is always greatly appreciated!) Until Next time….See you on the courts!!

GO EAGLES!!

Mid-Season Update

Everything is going great for Bridgewater Men’s tennis so far in the ODAC conference. We have an undefeated record in conference play, and have held our own against some tough teams outside of the conference to the likes of Averett, Methodist, and Baldwin-Wallace. It's as if we were tired of losing to these teams 5-4 going into yesterday’s match against a tough contender in the conference, Emory & Henry. We went down 3- 0 after the doubles and really had to dig out of a hole to pull out the win. This time, we won 5-4. It was really a great feeling after having 2 previous losses by the same score. We were down after I lost my singles match and had to take the remaining 5 spots to pull off the victory. So many a props do to my team for getting things done yesterday.

After half way through the season, everyone is really finding their 'a' games for the tougher stretch of conference matches we will face. Peter Hawkins and Brad Dewitt have only lost 1 match each, and are playing some of the best tennis of their life. Teddy Callow seemed to return to find a new level with a big win over a great player named Bruno. He has been hitting his forehand lights out since. Brent Floyd has yet to lose a match and Martin Donaire displayed some clutchness similar to Chauncey Billups in yesterday’s match.

With it being said how outstanding our team is playing, there is still much to improve upon. Our doubles play has been inconsistent, and this is the second straight time we have won a match, having lost all 3 doubles spots. This has been addressed countless times and we are getting back to the lab to figure things out. Also, we play Washington and Lee at home on Wednesday. Everyone should come and watch. The match is against one of the best teams and the ODAC, and we are hoping to prove to the naysayers that we can hang with these great teams. In the past, we have had success at a few spots against W and L, but they have such depth in their line-up. Hopefully, we can keep the Fiyah burning against the Natty ranked Generals.

One new dilemma the team has been facing is the team cheer. We don’t have the intensity and population of Bridgewater football and our huddle really shows the low intensity, or a lack there-of. The usual chant, “What comes after A” “B C!” seems a little outdated although it is a fan favorite. We just don’t make it loud enough unless the girl’s team joins the huddle. Also the adage has really grown older than the dirt in which it sleeps. Throwback jerseys are pretty cool, but sometimes you have to go with a fresh Chauncey. Any suggestions?

In conclusion, come out and watch Bridgewater take on W and L on Wednesday. You will have a great time. I assure you. Also, I would like to thank the athletic department for the amazing coverage of Bridgewater athletics. It is definitely one of the best athletic sites I have seen. I cannot think of many other schools that have highlights, blogs, and BC Hotseats along with so many other things.

Take power naps, run victory laps,

~Chris

Spring Break Recap

Coming together is a beginning.
Keeping together is progress.
Working together is success.
~Henry Ford

An Awesome week of Tennis, Sunshine, Beaches, and Team Bonding!!

The teams have just returned to Bridgewater from yet another amazing spring break trip to Hilton Head, South Carolina. We were blessed to have great weather all week all week so we were able to get all of our scheduled matches in as well as an additional match added to the schedule during the week. We faced some tough competition including a Division II team. The lady Eagles fought hard all week. We lost 7-2 to Methodist University on the way down to SC, won against Trine University, lost a close match 5-4 to Division 2 Millersville College, and lost a tough match the next day to Marian College from Indiana. Towards the end of the week, fatigue set in as we battled through 4 matches in 5 days. Playing matches back to back is always tough early in the season when we aren’t in “match shape” which is much different from practice shape, but it prepares us well for the remainder of the season when we will frequently have back-to-back matches. Coach talked to us about our results during the week. We were all a little disappointed that we weren’t able to pull out one or two more wins, but coach was optimistic about our upcoming ODAC matches after playing a tough schedule during spring break.

Besides playing tennis, the teams spent a great deal of time on the beach playing football and relaxing, spending time getting to know each other better in our amazing beach house (that even had an elevator!), having team meals together, and both teams playing games like Cranium, Scene-It, and pool in the evenings. One morning the women’s team fixed blueberry pancakes and bacon at our house and invited both teams to eat breakfast together. One evening we played putt-putt golf and on the last day the teams went shopping together at the outlets. We always have such a great time at Hilton Head and it seems to be the week where the men’s and women’s teams really get to know each other. Staying in a house with your teammates for a week is such a great way to build team relationships and this is one reason this trip is always so much fun. During our down time we often sat in the kitchen and dining room just talking and learning about each other. Once again, we had great parent support too! The parents of many of the players were able to come down this year and they cooked many meals for us, brought us snacks to have in the house, and brought Gatorades for us during match time (We even got a edible arrangement sent all the way from Ally’s parents in Connecticut!). Thank you so much to the Radke’s, Smith’s, Stone’s, and McConnaughy’s!

This week we have a full week of ODAC matches. Tuesday, we played Randolph Macon and won the match 8-1! The men’s team won their match 9-0! Afterward we went to former BC player Jessica Hill’s house where her parents fed both teams dinner. Wednesday the women’s team plays Washington & Lee at home at 4:00. Saturday, both teams hit the courts at home against Guilford with match time starting at 2:00. Saturday will be a test of how much we have improved this year and is a very important match for the women! We hope to see everyone there!

See you on the Courts….GO EAGLES!!

Eagles Battle During First ODAC Match

“Champions keep playing until they get it right.”
Billie Jean King

After the countless hours watching snow fall, playing tennis indoors, and conditioning and footwork drills, the BC Eagles tennis teams were finally able to get their seasons underway this weekend at our first conference match. Both the men’s and the women’s teams faced Virginia Wesleyan on Sunday at home. The men’s team picked up an easy victory against the Marlins winning 9-0.

The women’s match was much more competitive as it was a match between the #2 (Bridgewater) and #3 (Wesleyan) seeded teams in the ODAC according to the preseason poll. Unfortunately, we came out on the losing end of a very close 5-4 match which included three matches with tiebreakers. We were able to win two of the three doubles matches which got us off to a very strong start. We knew from the beginning that winning the doubles would be a necessary element to clinching the match. Unfortunately, we just weren’t able to pull it off in singles. Both Alissa Michael and Amanda Gorby picked up wins in their singles matches and Ally McConaughy and I both lost our singles matches in third set tiebreakers. The match, very easily, could have ended in our favor.

The outcome of the match wasn’t what we had hoped for, but there is much to be learned from this loss. We need to keep working hard and improving so that we can be successful in our other ODAC matches and in April when we face Virginia Wesleyan again at the tournament. As a team, we also struggled with being outdoors and facing the elements. I don’t like to make excuses but I felt like the weather really affected our performance negatively on Sunday. It was in the mid 30s all afternoon with strong winds. Besides the cold, it was hard to get in a rhythm and hit with confidence with the wind whipping through the courts. We got to practice outdoors for a little while on Saturday, but it wasn’t enough to get us acclimated to playing outdoors after being inside for so many weeks. This week we plan on going outside as much as possible to eliminate that as a major factor in our performance.

Like always, we had a great turnout of parents and family, family pets, friends, and classmates cheering us on from the sidelines. We continue to have a great fan turnout year after year and it is very encouraging as a player to feel that type of support especially for tennis which is not really popular as a spectator sport (especially at freezing temperatures)!

Our next match has been moved from Wednesday, March 3 to Thursday, March 4 and is a non conference match to be played at Shenandoah University. Hopefully the weather cooperates so we can get a W in the column on Thursday! This weekend, the teams leave for Hilton Head, South Carolina, where we will spend our entire spring break at the beach playing tennis and of course some two hand touch on the sand. It is the one of my favorite weeks of the year and I am especially looking forward to it this year. I can’t wait to go somewhere warmer than Virginia and spend my senior year spring break with my awesome teammates! See you on the courts…..GO EAGLES!!

What to Talk About?

Our first tennis match of the season was cancelled due to inclement weather. The snow from a few weeks earlier lingered around long enough to have us make this decision, which was highly disappointing for the Bridgewater tennis team.

The good news is that the snow on our tennis courts were miraculously cleared off by shovels. I would like to send a big thank you out to whoever cared enough about the tennis program and went that extra mile. Now it looks likely that we will play our HOME match against VA Wesleyan this SUNDAY. If I see another Spritz Nipper weather report, I will be unhappy.

Usually before home matches we will set up a team dinner. This will probably include both the guys and the girl’s team, and it is a great way to relax before a big match. The old team dinners, during the Smitty, Campbell era, opened my world up to the Galley on route 11. This place has enormous pastas and delicious Baklava. We kind of wore the Galley out for a while, and last year, we had decided to start going to the chain restaurants in Harrisonburg. We scheduled the team dinners at Chili’s, or the Texas Roadhouse. This year I might really be pushing for Rico’s Tacos and Sub Station. “Where is that?” you might be asking yourself. The old Waffle House on 11 with the creature flipping pancakes has been closed and along came the Sub Station. We will just have to see.

After the team dinner this weekend, the match will be Sunday. This is good because we will all have good nights of sleep. One problem I run into is on nights where I have a test and a tennis match. I stay up late for studying, and then I am so tired the next day that I cannot function. My reaction time becomes sub-par. I fixed this problem by crushing 5 hour energy shots before my matches, but this leads to anxiety attacks. Then I saw the key to my troubles in GNC when I was purchasing “get big” formula. Decaf 5 hour energies are being sold at a steal.

Practice, practice, and more practice is all that has been going on. But, our hard work will pay off come Sunday. Hope everyone can make it out there to the courts at 12.

Go Eagles…

Get ya’ popcorn ready

Snow, Snow, Go Away, BC Has Tennis Matches to Play!

The problem with winter sports is that - follow me closely here - they generally take place in winter.”—Dave Barry

“Our philosophy precedes from the belief that sport is an inalienable part of the educational process and a factor for promoting peace, friendship, cooperation and understanding among peoples.” —Juan Antonio Samaranch

Six days! Six days until our first tennis match of the spring 2010 season, unless of course we continue to have these weekly snow storms. We play next Tuesday at Ferrum which is in southern Virginia. I haven’t hit played tennis outside in about a month it seems, but with all of the conditioning that we have been doing indoors, I really feel strong and in shape when I do get the opportunity to actually play some tennis indoors. It hasn’t been the ideal situation, but I think that the conditioning will really pay off by keeping everyone healthy and preventing injuries once we start playing several matches a week.

I’m really excited for the matches to finally start. At some point, conditioning and playing against your own teammates gets repetitive and it is always nice to finally be able to put the hours of hard work to good use competing as a team against another team. I think that both the men’s and women’s teams are reaching that point of anticipation and excitement for the matches to start. Both teams have also been talking a lot about our spring break trip to South Carolina, an indicator that I am not the only person getting tired of old man winter! There really hasn’t been too much going on other than indoor practices and plenty of cold weather and snow. We all are looking forward to sunny skies and the warm weather that is perfect for tennis matches! Until next time...

See you on the (indoor) courts—Go Eagles!!!

Snow and New Uniforms

Our first match is closing in sooner than we think, but I believe that Bridgewater tennis is as ready as ever to start the season. We have not been getting outside to play as much considering the snow; however, we have made many trips to the indoor facility. You may be asking yourselves “Bridgewater has an indoor facility?” Thankfully, there are two tennis courts located behind quarrels and to the right of the cemetery. It is not much, but it more than most teams have.

One word to describe everyone’s feelings about the upcoming matches is eagerness. How will we stack up to the rest of the ODAC competition? Washington and Lee and Hampden Sydney were the top 2 teams last year, and mostly all of their players are returning. On top of this, many other teams have brought in some new guys without losing much of their starting line-up. Bridgewater tennis is eager to see how we do against this tough competition this year.

After a long day of conditioning last week we were rewarded with new shoes, jerseys, and warm ups. Coach went with the theme of Ketch-Up and Mustard colors for the warm-ups, which I am a big fan of. I don’t know what the rest will think. Hopefully our team van doesn’t get pulled over by the fashion police traveling to away matches.

Other than new uniforms and a great deal of conditioning, not too much has been happening on Tennis Island. But stay tuned…matches start February 23^rd and the 28^th is the first home match for the fans. It would be incredible if the fans that usually come to basketball games made that short trip out back to the courts for some tennis action. These fans could rest their weary, over-worked heads on the soft grass of Henman Hill and become a part of Bridgewater tennis.

Until next time,

Chris

And…

Don’t forget Dwight…Shaq is the real Man of Steel.

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

“Gold medals aren't really made of gold. They're made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.”
--Dan Gable

We have just completed our first full week of practice for the Spring 2010 season. Because of the unusually wintry weather we have been having lately, our practices have mostly been indoors and have consisted of some hitting and a lot of conditioning! Twice a week we practice in the mornings before classes and I think that a lot of girls prefer this to midafternoon practice because it makes it easier to get homework done in the evenings. I always feel bittersweet about the first two weeks of season for any sport I have played because I am never ready to be incredibly stiff and sore for that length of time, but I am ready to get back into shape. Unfortunately, one can not happen without the other. It has been awesome being back at practice with the girls working hard but having fun so that definitely makes it worth it. One of this year’s rookies, Olivia Stone, told me, "it's been really great to start practice. I love being with all of my teammates; it makes practicing way more fun and seems to motivate me to work my hardest!" It’s great to see the freshman developing a good work ethic from the very get go as well as having fun at practice with her teammates. That is exactly what practice should be like for the girls and its very encouraging to me for the upcoming season.

The past two weeks have been really crazy for me. After completing interterm final papers and tests most of the girls got a much needed weekend off and a few went north to go skiing together! That weekend, instead of relaxing before the spring semester, I travelled to Mississippi State for my very first veterinary school interview and drove to Virginia Tech for a second interview. The travelling and stress of the interviews and applying to vet school along with the beginning of new classes (which always seems overwhelmingy) and the late nights watching the Australian Open created for a super busy week with not much sleep. I totally agree with Olivia in that being around everyone at practice has been a lot of fun and helped to keep me level when there has been so much going on lately! Our first match is only three weeks away so there is much work to be done before then but we are all excited to get the season underway. Until next time….

See you on the courts—Go Eagles!!!

~ Megan Mathias ~

Keeping the "Fiyah" Burning - Chris Radke

Welcome!

So another year of Eagles tennis is underway, and our squad is eagerly awaiting our first match scheduled against Ferrum College on February 23rd. But that is a long month away and there is much work needed to be done before this match. We are coming off of our best team finish last spring, which was third in the conference. The problem is we have lost our three seniors Brian Ryan and Andrew, who were a major contribution to this success. Now it is time for our younger guys to step in and cook up some good tennis for the year.
Along with a couple of new faces in our team’s top 6, Chaulky had basically received a new heart in his chest. After one too many 6 ball drills, he found himself in the back of an ambulance on the way to the hospital. Thankfully, in what has become a great story of success, Chaulky has returned to the courts and been playing as much tennis as ever. It just goes to show with our line-up that even if a couple of things get replaced, everything can still work!
Fall season was a terrific way to start and see where we are at individually in comparison to the rest of the field. However the best part has yet to begin. Starting in spring, we get to compete in the dual matches. The atmosphere and team aspect of tennis really shines here and I hope that Bridgewater will be able to show up the other teams in terms of intensity and team Chemistry. Sometimes this can be the difference maker in a 5-4 win or a 4-5 loss.
The goals for this season were made pretty clear in tonight’s meeting. Nothing less than a bronze medal, 3rd place finish again, and the sportsmanship award. The sportsmanship award is something usually reserved for the teams that never win and need a trophy for something. We hope to change this around and win with receiving this achievement. I don’t think our sportsmanship has ever been bad in the past; it is just influenced by whatever team we are playing. The same goes with our team’s energy. Sometimes if we play a team with low energy or bad sportsman ship we come out with low energy or bad sportsmanship. One thing I would like to see is for us to set the tempo of a match with great competitive energy without sacrificing sportsmanship.
Anyways, in this next month we will train very hard on the courts and in school. Welcome to the BC Tennis Blog and keep checking back weekly updates.

Keep the fiyah burning,
Chris The Cactus

Welcome to the BC Eagles Tennis Blog!

Nothing can substitute for just plain hard work. I had to put in the time to get back. And it was a grind. It meant training and sweating every day. But I was completely committed to working out to prove to myself that I still could do it.
Andre Agassi

I would like to welcome the players, parents, alumni and fans of the Bridgewater tennis program to our new blog! I would first like to say thank you for the amount of support there has been for our program. Since I have played for BC, the parents have been fantastic about coming to home and away matches, supporting and cheering for the players, and bringing great food to keep us all going out there. Everything that you do has been greatly appreciated by each of the players and coaches.

As the members of the women’s team are finishing up our interterm classes, we look forward to the upcoming weeks of practice and our quickly approaching spring season. It has been very encouraging to me over the last couple of weeks to see our players in the gym working out, at the indoor courts working on their game, and even outside on the courts playing tennis on their own time. Our first practice is next Wednesday and I hope that everyone’s hard work over the break will give us a jumpstart into conditioning and getting back into the swing of things in the first few weeks of practice.

As our team learned during our tournaments in the fall, many other teams in the ODAC have really been working hard in the offseason and have improved greatly. I walked away from the tournament slightly disappointed in our performance and feeling that we did not finish as well as we should have, but I think we all gained a sense of urgency and a desire to rise to the challenge. We have been working to improve our own tennis game in order to perform to our full potential during our matches in the spring season. Coach Smith encouraged us to consider the ODAC tournament an experience to learn from and as a personal challenge to each of us to improve.

The BC women’s tennis teams of 2008 and 2009 have raised the bar of expectation as we had two of the best seasons in the history of the program. In the 2008 season we finished 2^nd in the ODAC losing only to nationally ranked Washington and Lee. In 2009, we finished with an 8-2 record in the ODAC and a 3^rd place finish in the conference. I have very high expectations as well for the 2010 spring season!

Last year we graduated one senior, Jessica Hill, who contributed greatly to the success of our team and will be greatly missed. Fortunately, we have gained four freshman and have six returning players. This year we have more girls on the team and I think that we have more depth in our lineup than in years past. This will be helpful during those inevitable matches when someone is injured or sick and the lineup needs to be adjusted. I have confidence that any of our players could step into a new lineup position and perform very well.

We will have four weeks of practice before we get to gauge our progress at our first match at Ferrum on Feburary 23. Our first ODAC match will be held at Bridgewater College on February 28 against Virginia Wesleyan who edged us in the ODAC semifinals last year. I look forward to keeping you updated on the progress of our season and seeing you at some of our matches!

See you on the Courts….GO EAGLES!!!