Practice Starts Next Week!

Hey Folks!

Well we've had an interesting Conditioning Season to say the least. Although we haven't had much of a severe winter, we have had lots of rain. Not sure we have gotten as much accomplished as I would have liked over the last five weeks, but it is what it is.

Practice starts next week and we will be practicing Monday - Friday, 3:00-5:00pm. Currently, I only have three courts to work with at the Racquet Club (three are under repair), so I may move some of our practices over to the old Hixson Middle School Courts. There are five, recently renovated courts over there, which would make things easier once we start doing challenge matches. For now though, we will meet at the Racquet Club as usual.

Let me introduce the teams.

Girls:

Kayla Morgan (Senior)
Whitney Clack (Junior)
Lydia Lindsey (Junior)
Karina Iksanova (Junior)
Michelle Phillips (Sophomore)
Haylee Gossett (Sophomore)
Corynne Schannuth (Sophomore)
Emily Davis (Sophomore)
Emily Gilreath (Freshman)
Maggie Ozborn (Freshman)

Boys:

Dylan Millwood (Senior)
George Ozborn (Senior)
Cory Phillips (Senior)
Kevin Nguywen (Sophomore)
Jacob Lindsey (Freshman)
Nicolas Rodgers (Freshman)
Rivers DeFries (Freshman)

As you can see we are a little short handed on the boys' side. I would love to add 1-3 more boys to this team, so if you know of any underclassmen boys interested in tennis, send them my way.

I will be sending a note home with your children today regarding a Parent meeting on Sunday. Please fill it out and let me know if you will attend. Thanks!

Trojans, Tornadoes & Troupers

Wow, it seems like half a year has passed since last I posted. I apologize for that. Let me catch up!

We played Soddy Daisy on the Thursday before Easter. Those matches went pretty much the way I expected. It was my first meeting with our nearest, non-district, geographical rival. On the Boys' side, the Trojans lost five seniors from last year's team (one of which earned a scholarship to play at Tennessee Wesleyan), so I knew they were in rebuilding mode. Our upperclassmen-heavy lineup easily dispatched their inexperienced team 8-1. With the match win already secured, Jae Yoo once again offered to sit out of the lineup to allow someone else to get some varsity experience. Freshman, Nathan Terrell got his first varsity singles win at the #6 spot.

It was completely opposite on the Girls' side. With only one freshman in their top six, Soddy is one of the toughest public school teams in our area. Our girls were no match, especially playing without our #3 Seed-- Michelle Phillips, was out sick. Kudos to Lydia Lindsey for coming on short notice ready to play a very tough opponent. It was her first varsity singles match!

Here are the results:

Soddy Daisy Girls def. Hixson Girls 9-0

Girls Singles:

Callie Brannon def. Candace Cline 8-2
Kaitlyn Oscai def. Whitney Clack 8-4
Alex Schafer def. Haylee Gossett 8-3
Olivia Holden def. Corynne Schannuth 8-0
Jessica Powell def. Abby O'Rear 8-0
Abigail Ellis def. Lydia Lindsey 8-0

Girls Doubles:

Oscai/Schafer def. Cline/Clack 8-4
Brannon/Powell def. Gossett/Schannuth 8-1
Holden/Ellis def. O'Rear/Lindsey 8-0


Hixson Boys def. Soddy Daisy Boys 8-1

Boys Singles:

Jordan Crowe (SD) def. Dylan Millwood 8-4
George Ozborn def. James Acuff 8-2
Cory Phillips def. Dillon Keef 9-8 (9-7)
Myles Goforth def. Wes Ford 8-6
Eric Barr def. Tyler Johns 8-2
Nathan Terrell def. Justin Bennett 8-1

Boys Doubles:

Ozborn/Phillips def. Crowe/Acuff 8-6
Millwoood/Goforth def. Ford/Johns 8-2
Barr/Yoo def. Keef/Bennett 8-3


After the long weekend, things got a little crazy here in the Chattanooga area. My thoughts and prayers go out to all who were adversely affected by this terrible storm system. We had to cancel two district matches due to the storm-- we will try to make up Red Bank and CSAS early next week.

After two days of good weather we did manage to get our JV match taken care of on Signal Mountain. I greatly appreciate everyone who came out to play and support our young players. We had eight girls (Michell and Haylee came up to play for the JV) and two boys show up to play on a beautiful day. Everyone got a singles and a doubles match. Though we did not manage to score any victories, everyone got some valuable experience. Coach Dressler has a very deep team at Signal Mountain, none of the players we played today were in his top 9 and several were eighth-graders! Still, the only difference between those girls and boys and our's is playing time. His players know that it takes a year-round commitment to get better at tennis. That's the lesson I hope our players learned today.

Here are the results:

Signal Mtn JV Girls def. Hixson JV Girls 12-0

Girls Singles:

Sydney Adcock def. Michelle Phillips 8-3
Mary Grace Napoliton def. Haylee Gossett 8-2
Anna Killen Cameron def. Emily Davis 8-3
Catherine Agnew def. Kindall Billingsley 8-5
Katie Thompson def. Meagan Dagnan 8-0
Audrey Butler def. Lydia Lindsey 8-5
Katie Thompson def. Cicely McCoy 6-1
Audrey Butler def. Dista Rahyu 6-0

Girls doubles:

Adcock/Napoliton def. Phillips/Gossett 8-1
Cameron/Thompson def. Davis/Billingsley 8-1
Agnew/Butler def. Dagnan/Lindsey 8-5
Cameron/Thompson def. McCoy/Rahyu 8-1

Boys Singles:

Micajah Tucker def. Nathan Terrell 8-5
Jason Morris def. Kaleb Billinglsey 8-3

Boys Doubles:

Tucker/Morris def. Terrell/Billingsley 8-6


Up Next: Tentatively: April 2, Monday @ HOME vs. CSAS. If we have school on Monday and if the weather cooperates, we will play CSAS. Our girls should win this time, if everyone in our top six shows up. Our boys have to play better than they have thus far this season to have a chance. No practice or playing over the last five days does not make me very confident going in to this one.

Wildcats Swat Yellow Jackets!

Nearly a complete win today for the boys and girls teams. The girls did not lose a match, so I thought I'd feature their team picture. The boys only lost one match at #1 Doubles.

Here are the results:

Hixson Girls def. Lookout Valley Girls 9-0

Girls Singles:

Candace Cline def. Torey Yates 8-1
Whitney Clack def. Hope Gibson 8-1
Michelle Phillips def. Hayley Brown 8-1
Haylee Gossett def. Cotie San 8-1
Corynne Schannuth def. Jessie Lowrance 8-4
Abby O'Rear def. Mariah Hoffer 8-0

Girls Doubles:

Cline/Clack def. San/Lowrance 8-1
Gossett/Schannuth def. Brown/Caitlyn Dowell 8-0
Phillips/O'Rear def. Hoffer/Jessica Thacker 8-0

Hixson Boys def. Lookout Valley Boys 8-1

Boys Singles:

Dylan Millwood (H) def. Christian Eaves 9-7
George Ozborn (H) def. David Jones 8-4
Cory Phillips (H) def. Matthew Dillard 8-3
Myles Goforth (H) def. Sam Hartley 8-1
Eric Barr (H) def. Will Benefield 8-0
Jae Yoo (H) def. Josh Hickman 8-0

Boys Doubles:

Eaves/Jones (LV) def. Ozborn/Phillips 8-3
Millwood/Goforth (H) def. Dillard/Hartley 8-1
Barr/Yoo (H) def. Benefield/Hickman 8-0

Records:

Hixson Girls: 4-8 (Overall); 2-4 (District)
Hixson Boys: 6-5 (Overall; 3-3 (District)

Up Next: Thursday, April 21, Soddy Daisy @ HOME. It will be my first year since taking over the program that we meet this geographical rival. The Soddy boys team is in a bit of a rebuilding year, but the girls are solid.

Our Trip to Dayton.

I think the best thing that happened on our trip to Dayton this year, is we got a little team bonding time at our first joint team dinner of the year. I really thought our boys had a chance to win this one, but it was not in the cards. I knew the girls were in for a tough day. Five of the lady Golden Eagles are either juniors or seniors. They are an experienced and well-coached team.

In the end, this is a non-district match, and a great opportunity for our kids to play some good players.

Here are the results:

Rhea County Girls def. Hixson Girls 9-0

Girls Singles:

Kelci Fredrick def. Candace Cline 8-1
Kaylee Argo def. Whitney Clack 8-4
Caylee Cochrane def. Michelle Phillips 8-0
Addison Edwards def. Corynne Schannuth 8-1
Gina Reed def. Kayla Morgan 8-0
Melanie Johnson def. Abby O'Rear 8-1

Girls Doubles:

Fredrick/Argo def. Cline/Clack 8-1
Cochrane/Reed def. Phillips/Schannuth 8-2
Edwards/Johnston def. Morgan/O'Rear 8-0

Rhea County Boys def. Hixson Boys 5-4
Boys Singles:

Dylan Coulter (RC) def. Dylan Millwood 8-6
Nick McWerter (RC) def. George Ozborn 8-4
Zach Madewell (RC) def. Cory Phillips 8-2
Myles Goforth (H) def. Evan Smith 8-2
Eric Barr (H) def. Austin Patton 9-7
Kyle Runyon (RC) def. Jae Yoo 8-4

Boys Doubles:

Coulter/McWerter (RC) def. Millwood/Goforth 8-1
Ozborn/Phillips (H) def. Madewell/Smith 8-5
Barr/Yoo (H) def. Patton/Runyan 8-4

Records:

Hixson Girls: 3-8 (Overall); 2-4 (District)
Hixson Boys: 5-5 (Overall; 3-3 (District)

Up Next: Tuesday, April 19, Lookout Valley @ Home. Both the boys and girls got a win last year, I expect the same this year.

Tough Loss.

Okay, let me just say this is not a sour grapes post. Hats off to the East Hamilton boys for pulling off another nail-biter. Once again our boys came up one win shy of a victory. Interestingly, we did not sweep doubles this time. Jae Yoo (pictured above) had a stunning victory at #6 singles today, 8-6. Stunning because the last time we played the Hurricanes, Jae lost to the same opponent 8-0. I don't give very many hugs, but I gave Jae a big one after that win. It was a gritty and gutsy performance. He had lost at #3 doubles, against East Hamilton's #4 & #2 seeds playing together at #3 doubles, and I told him I needed him to win at singles for us to have a chance. He delivered. My #2 doubles team, George and Cory, trounced two East Hamilton players that aren't in their top six (draw your own conclusion there). Things were a little more interesting at #1 doubles, but our boys (Dylan and Myles) prevailed in a tiebreak. Still with three singles matches on the court, all we needed was one win. The Hurricanes slammed that door shut.

On the girls side of the house, we improved a bit from our showing last time. Whitney again managed to get a win at #2 singles. We got a surprise win at #3 doubles. Abby O'Rear (filling in for Kayla Morgan) and Michelle Phillips beat the same two girls that beat my #2 girls team last time we played at Standifer Gap. Again, I think all my girls battled today against a very talented team.

Here are the results:

East Hamilton Girls def. Hixson Girls 7-2

Girls Singles:

Taylor Johnson (EH) def. Candace Cline 8-3
Whitney Clack (H) def. Hilleary Chandler 8-6
Abigail Ware (EH) def. Michelle Phillips 8-4
Katie Loftin (EH) def. Haylee Gossett 8-4
Kayla Dyar (EH) def. Corynne Schannuth 8-2
Jessica Peters (EH) def. Kayla Morgan 8-2

Girls Doubles:

Johnson/Chandler (EH) def. Cline/Clack 8-2
Ware/Loftin (EH) def. Gossett/Schannuth 8-1
Phillips/O'Rear (H) def. Carly Jones/Jordan Kaset 8-4

East Hamilton Boys def. Hixson Boys 5-4

Boys Singles:

Daniel Jung (EH) def. Dylan Millwood 8-2
Bailey Lenoir (EH) def. George Ozborn 8-5
Ryan Williamson (EH) def. Cory Phillips 8-5
Clark Templeton (EH) def. Myles Goforth 8-4
Eric Barr (H) def. Randsom Mark 8-6
Jae Yoo (H) def. Tej Dhond 8-6

Boys Doubles:

Millwood/Goforth (H) def. Jung/Williamson 9-8 (7-4)
Ozborn/Phillips (H) def. David Templeton/River Mark 8-1
Lenoir/C. Templeton (EH) def. Barr/Yoo 8-1

Records:

Hixson Girls: 3-7 (Overall); 2-4 (District)
Hixson Boys: 5-4 (Overall); 3-3 (District)

Up Next: Thursday, April 14 @ Rhea County. I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but the Rhea County girls are going to be tough. This is a bit of a down year for Golden Eagles on the boy's side. If we play the way I know we can, they should come home with a win.

Wildcats Own the Owls!

I am not going to fib. I realize this is a down year for Ooltewah, but this one felt good today. We have played the Owls in each of the three seasons I've been head coach at Hixson. Since they are not in our district (they are a AAA school) we only face them once per year. In our first two meetings, we won a grand total of 3 individual matches-- Boys and Girls. Let me put that another way: Ooltewah 33, Hixson 3. Not to put another exclamation on how dominant the Owls have been, but those three wins we got were generally against players not in their top six, once the score was comfortably in their favor. Today, we evened up those numbers a bit. A complete victory for the girls, 9-0, and the boys did pretty well losing only two matches. Neither the Boys or Girls lost a doubles match! Nice win for Dylan Millwood (pictured above) at #1 Singles. Meanwhile, our #1 girl, Candace Cline, is on a nice little three match winning streak in singles.

Here are the results:

Hixson Girls def. Ooltewah Girls 9-0

Girls Singles:

Candace Cline def. Izabela Zduner 8-2
Whitney Clack def. Kayla Leach 8-1
Michelle Phillips def. Rachael Faulkner 9-7
Haylee Gossett def. Samantha Whitson 8-6
Corynne Schannuth def. Sara Davidson 8-4
Kayla Morgan def. Beth Burnette 8-5

Girls Doubles:

Clack/Cline def. Zdnuer/Leach 8-5
Gossett/Schannuth def. Faulkner/Davidson 8-4
Phillips/Morgan def. Whitson/Burnette 8-3

Hixson Boys def. Ooltewah Boys 7-2


Boys Singles:

Dylan Millwood (H) def. Chris Stiner 8-2
George Ozborn (H) def. Bryson Lype 9-8 (8-6)
Kyle Molhusen (O) def. Cory Phillps 8-3
Richard Huyuh (O) def. Myles Goforth 8-6
Eric Barr (H) def. Brady Matthews 8-4
Jae Yoo (H) def. Jared Moore 9-7

Boys Doubles:

Millwood/Goforth (H) def. Stiner/Lype 8-3
Ozborn/Phillips (H) def. Molhusen/Huyuh 8-3
Barr/Yoo (H) def. Matthews/Moore 8-3

Records:

Hixson Girls: 3-6 (Overall); 2-3 (District)
Hixson Boys: 5-3 (Overall); 3-2 (District)

Up Next: Tuesday, April 12 vs. East Hamilton @ HOME. What can I say? I don't think there is a match on our schedule that is more crucial to us than this one on the boys' side. The Hurricanes nipped us 5-4, in our first meeting a couple of weeks ago. We need to be at our best tomorrow. The girls are in for a tough one, as the Lady Hurricanes are unbeaten in our district, and they thoroughly dismantled our team 8-1 in our first meeting.

Can't Beat the Heat.

Another first for me today in my short tenure at Hixson. We had our first Junior Varsity Match. It was just the girls, but I can't help but think we've come a long way baby. Last year I was forfeiting matches because I couldn't get six girls to show up for varsity matches, and today I had seven show up for a JV match.

Unfortunately, it was a very hot day. I think it felt even worse because we've had such cool temperatures recently. I had two girls who suffered some mild, heat related symptoms. I'll take a few minutes out of our practice time next week to discuss hydration. Hopefully, this won't happen again. Due to the heat, some of the singles matches were shortened to six games.

So a lot of girls got some much needed experience today-- seven to be exact. Technically, I have eight girls on the Junior Varsity team. Two of them, however, were unable to play due to prior commitments. Big thanks to Corynne Schannuth for filling in on short notice for Dista Rahyu. Corynne plays #5 on the varsity, but played #1 for the JV today. I needed seven players, because that's how many I thought I would have when I talked to Coach Webb earlier in the week.

So playing a program as deep as CCS, I hope my girls realize just how much they have to learn. I saw some good playing from just about all of my girls, but I also saw quite a few cringe-worthy moments. We'll talk about it next practice (Wednesday) and see what we can do to get better.

Here are the results:

CCS JV Girls def. Hixson JV Girls 10-0

Singles:

Kruesi Brock def. Corynne Schannuth 6-4
Sarah Smith def. Abby O'Rear 8-2
Candace Reagan def. Amanda Garletts 3-0 (retired)
Kathryn Bosshardt def. Lydia Lindsey 6-1
Beverly Samples def. Kindall Billingsley 8-2
Merces Reynolds def. Cicely McCoy 6-1
Katheryn Hoffecker def. Meagan Dagnan 8-6

Doubles:

Brock/Bosshardt def. Schannuth/O'Rear 8-5
Reagan/Mallory Padgett def. Garletts/Lindsey 8-2
Smith/Samples def. Billinglsey/McCoy 8-1

Up Next for the JV: Saturday, April 23 @ Signal Mountain. Just like CCS, Signal Mountain has a very deep team, it should be another tough one.