Junior Team Tennis Finals!

I had some trouble deciding whether to write about my Junior Team Tennis finals or the choir trip first. Then I realized it's only fitting that I go in chronological order:


SO, throughout the year a select few of kids in my tennis program played on a tennis team (called the "Harlem Treers") that competed on weekends in a lead-up to the regional championships in April. My team was absolutely amazing and I'm extremely grateful that I'm able to train with them on a regular basis. We played well throughout the year and we were ultimately seeded second at the finals, which took place the last Sunday of April (the 24th???).

Since my family doesn't own a car, my dad had to rent one to be able to get to the National Tennis Center out in Queens. We could've taken the train but the subway system was incredibly messed up and it would have taken an extra hour, so we thought driving would be more convenient. My father ended up driving two of my teammates as well, so I guess renting the car was a good choice.

We got to the tennis center at 11, checked in, and then warmed up on an empty court before the contest started. It was extremely windy, but luckily I brought a warm-up suit which did not only save me from the cold but also made me look like an incredibly legitimate tennis player, which I like to think I am. The official competition started at 12, so we then headed over to the courts we were playing on, and we all snapped a few photos on my camera:

Tyra, captain of the team (pictured left), and Sofia (on the right)

Isadora (left), and Dina (right)

Unfortunately, the girls were much more interested in taking photos than the guys, so I have no pictures of Stephen or Justin.

Tyra getting ready to serve (featuring my racket)

We beat the first two teams incredibly easily, losing only one match out of 10 (unfortunately I was the one who lost, but the guy cheated so I'll forgive myself). Each round we would play one boys' singles, girls' singles, boys' doubles, girls' doubles, and mixed doubles match.

Then we played the last team. Out of nowhere we had to play people who were incredibly talented, and we were already tired from the day (our opponents only had to play one team to make it to the finals) and weren't playing well because we had only played crappy teams. We ended up losing, but it was pretty close. Tyra and I were still playing a match from the second round when we started playing the last team, so we weren't able to select who on our team would play who on the other team. We maybe could have won if we were able to choose, but the other team really deserved to win.

I got a nice silver medal and a participation ribbon, but of course it would have been better had we won and gone on to the state finals. But I guess you gotta take what's given to you.