New England 10's Impress at Competition
September 29, 2009 11:16 AM
The 10's Cross-Sectional Competition provided players with top-quality instruction and opponents, but it also instilled in the players lessons in sportsmanship that will become as important as any technique learned.
New England juniors Grace Joyce, Ada Wiggans, Brian Niguidula, Richard Ciammara traveled to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, N.Y. to face off against peers from the Middle States and Eastern.
"This is an amazing opportunity for some of New England's youngest talent to compete out of section with development not rankings being the primary focus," said David Zeutas-Broer, USTA New England's Player Development Manager.
Mike Slattery, director of Progressive Tennis, located at Intensity Tennis and Fitness in Norwalk, Conn., was more than pleased with the camp’s success.
Grace Joyce, Ada Wiggans, Brian Niguidula, Richard Ciammara and High Performance Coach Mike Slattery
"Being the second year of this competition, I realize the importance of this unique environment for both the USTA and the kids," he said. "The kids behaved well, competed well and all matured one day closer to being a great champion. At this age the kids need to be reassured that as long as they are doing the right things it is ok to be down in the score, stay calm, be composed and they will be ok."
He added, "The theme of the weekend was to enjoy yourselves and love being able to compete at this great event. I am so proud of each one of these kids and what they learned this weekend. Our kids won 26 to 30 sets of tennis with only one loss in doubles. This says a lot about our section and the coaching they are receiving throughout the year."