Love might not mean anything in the game of tennis, but that doesn’t stop Powell High School’s tennis players from being excited about the spring tennis season of 2024. 

The beginning of the spring season essentially kicks off the fall season for these players. The objective of starting in the spring is that the players will continue throughout the summer into the fall, to make up for such a small competitive season. 

“The spring season helps you prepare,” junior Kendal Eden said. “You can learn new things to take into the summer when you practice on your own, and then bring them into the fall.” 

A few tennis players expressed their thoughts to assistant tennis coach Brandon Preator. They described his discussion in practice as “yapping” and claimed he has a “bad case of the yappers” when it comes to an introduction on the first day of practice.

“Mr. Preator is, indeed, quite the chit-chatter,” sophomore Kyra Morrow said. “He is, as some might put it, a D1 yapper. He drinks a yappaccino every morning.”

Mr. Preator shares his perspective on these comments and is unaware of how to respond to the accusations. 

“We’ve had one practice and I talked way too much. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to take from that.” 

Mr. Preator’s excessive comments aren’t the only difficulty these tennis players face. Uncooperative weather results in cancellations of practice, taking away needed time for students to hone their skills. 

“The weather can affect our practices,” sophomore Isaac Dunsey said. “Some days we don’t even get to practice, which is sad.” 

Despite the obstacles, participants of the spring tennis season are determined to take advantage of the practices to improve their gain. 

“I just want more practice and to improve on specific skills,” junior Ava Stearns said. “ I just like gaining more experience.” 

A significant aspect of tennis is the mental game. Coaches try to emphasize the importance of the mental aspect throughout the fall season, whereas the spring season’s purpose is to work on the fundamentals. 

“Spring season is less of a mental game,” Preator said. “The spring season is the beginning of our fall season so it’s kind of a gradual process. We focus on the physical aspect of tennis, and then as the summer progresses we start playing more tennis and get into the mental aspects in the fall.”

For tennis players, the beginning of the spring season means summer is approaching, but it also is the beginning of a great season. 

“I’m just glad that we have a spring season,” Eden said. “After a long winter, spending time with friends and getting better at tennis makes everything better.