Here's a shot of Jill doing the Tennis Version of the Macarena Dance...! By the way, in addition to her tennis talent, Jill really is also a gifted and talented dancer. Her years of dance training are definitely paying off on the tennis court! 

Here's Jill Moss of Columbia Lakes in an action photo getting down for a low shot. Jill has great drive and determination and is a great competitor! This photo was taken at a tennis camp earlier this year. 

Cameron Klement (left) and Wesley Stonestreet (right) are two up and coming young players in the Columbia Lakes Junior Development Program. Both are seasoned tournament competitors and will be participating in next weekend's adult and junior open. 

Here's a photo of Seth Purcell. He's in The Friday Home School Classes. He's got great speed and energy. He's also got great great wit...! 

Vanessa Akins awaits a volley at the net in this photo. She and her partner Stephanie Reed placed third in the Girls Varsity Doubles District tournament this past week. Vanessa is going to play for St Edwards University in the fall and will be working very hard between now and then to bring her game to a new level in time for collegiate competition. 

Chase Sanders of Angleton High School lifts his toss on the serve in this photo. He made the semi finals in boys doubles at his school district varsity tournament this past Thursday. He had a great year this year playing Varsity as a freshman. He's got a great High School career ahead of him. 

Jill Moss, Rachel Frazier and Ryan Sebesta pose at a recent tennis class ball collection at Columbia Lakes Country Club. 

Cameron Klement has a very good serve. His base is a little wide in this photo but he has good extension of his tossing arm and a nice tight power loop. His serve is one of his best shots. Cameron takes private lessons and is also a regualr participant in the Columbia Lakes Country Club Junior Development program. 

THE PROBLEM:

Here is Wesley Stonestreet's serve. In this photo he has brought his left foot too far forward which forces his weight back. This problem is caused by his toss which is too straight up over his head. You can't see the ball in this photo, but tossing it too straight up causes the serve to go long most of the time. It also hinders raquet speed and power.

THE CORRECTION:

Here is a much better serve. Notice the left foot is behind the right foot and Wes is leaning slightly forward. This serve is going to have much more velocity than the one in the previous photo. I think there's still more room to get the toss farther in front but this technique will produce a stronger serve.

John Henry Adams plays for Angleton Junior High and is one of the most avid participants in the Columbia Lakes junior development program. 

Connor's Forehand 'BEFORE'

This is the 'Old Connor'... He used to have poor footwork and spacing to the ball. In this photo he set up too far away from the ball and had to close his stance to adjust his spacing. This stepping away from his intended target forced him to use his right arm as his sole means of power and direction. Then notice that the left arm is coming across his body in a hugging motion. This action crunches the shoulders together and restricts the swing.

'AFTER'

His Feet are better here. Notice that with a more open stance Connor can rotate his hips into the ball creating a much more forceful shot with much greater effeciency. We're still working on using the left hand more on the follow through. Connor still has a slight 'hug' but it's almost worked out now. He really has a nice forehand groundstroke...!

I won't be publishing any photos for the next few days but please check back next week...! 

Kathryn Rice is a senior at Angleton High School. She has been taking private lessons from me for a little over a year. She was last year's district girls singles champion but this year Angleton has be realigned into another district and she will be hard pressed to duplicate last year's performance. She is trying to play through a knee injury right now. One thing's for sure, and that is that Kathryn will not go down without giving it her very best effort. She's got one of the best competitive natures of anyone I've coached in a long time. 

Connor Copeland reported that he won his first school tennis match on Thursday. Connor plays for Evangelical Christrian School in Tennessee. He won his first singles match 8-5 and his first doubles match 8-2. He's got s 2-0 lifetime record so far in interscholastic play. Not Bad, Eh...? I'm very proud of Him...! 

Gracie Nagle is the Columbia Lakes Tennis Center Pet of the Month...! She loves to hang out while Joe and Dolphina are practicing. And she watches all their matches very closely. On changeovers she is normally gets a doggy treat so I'm pretty sure that she is one of the few dogs on the planet that knows how to keep score in tennis. I think she still has trouble with tiebreakers, though. 

Vanessa Akins is a Senior at West Columbia High School. She plans to attend Saint Edwards University in Austin in the fall and hopes to play tennis for them. She has worked hard this year and has improved every aspect of her game. Her best shot is her backhand groundstroke. I've enjoyed working with Vanessa this year and predict a very successful college career...! 

Here is Vanessa at the net waiting on a volley during an afternoon workout. 

Soren Gunther plays on the Angleton Junior High Team and participates in Coach Sam's Monday afternoon drills. Here he's using the Kangaroo-pouch method of ball collection which is more commonly used in Australia! 

Trey Gibson is a student at Freeport Junior High. He particpates in the Columbia Lakes Junior Development program on the weekends. His strengths are his groundstrokes. His forehand is his favorite shot. 

Trey Gibson stretches for a forehand at the Junior High Tennis Fun Day held a few weeks ago. 

Matt Mcnicoll helps facillitate the drills in the Friday morning classes. He also helped with my summer program last year. Matt is a very good assistant. He is very dependable, he's a great player, and all the students like and respect him. And not only is 'Coach Matt' a good tennis player, I hear is a very good golfer, too...! 

Jennifer Mcnicoll is an 8th grader in home school. She is a regular participant in the Friday morning homeschool drill and tennis league. Her game has improved tremendously in the past few months. She loves tennis and is very encouraging to the other players in the group. Jennifer is a real leader and one of the best ball collectors in all my classes! 

Amy Mcnicoll is the youngest of the Mcnicoll clan. She has great groundstrokes. Sometimes she gets a little shy around a camera. 

Joe Nagle is one of the greatest tennis enthusiasts at Columbia Lakes. He and his wife Dolfina are avid players. Joe uses the new wilson N-Code Racquet.