FARMINGTON, Minn. -- Inside the positive atmosphere of Farmington boys tennis are the pitfalls of a tough schedule as well as the joys of going through the season together with a few life lessons sprinkled in along the way.
Senior captain and number one doubles player Josh Stoneburg thrives off the challenge of a hard match, "I'm ready for the big competition schools. That's the thing I'm most ready for. I love playing against those schools because I like playing against people that have speed and power."
He will have a new partner this year, "I'll be with someone new. I don't mind. I don't have a preference with being with anyone. If you want to play in a match with me, you can ask the coach."
Junior captain and doubles player Ben Monson enjoys the time with teammates, "Our best quality by far is our team atmosphere. Everybody's friendly with each other…It's a happy atmosphere."
He is also up for a challenge, "I get to learn a lot from my opponents. I get to see their strategy. See their team effort. See how they interact with each other."
Tigers coach Emma Grosse likes how the experienced players are leading the way, "I love the personalities because the veterans are kind of enjoying it a little more this year. And they're more in a mentor-type role in terms of guiding some of the newer players."
She says that includes players that may be back on the roster but have less experience. Team bonding is crucial, "There is an individual component as well as a team component. (We) do bus rides, do team dinners, we try to watch some pro tournaments as a watch party. Trying to make sure they are still engaged in a team activity.
"I think it's also important for life skills. It's important for them to learn how to do things on their own and problem solve on the court. But it's also important for them to learn to work together as a team and understand that their actions might impact somebody else."
Stoneburg says players have set their own goals, whether it's for the team or individually, "I'm just ready to see everyone accomplish a goal that they've written down and submitted. And I want to see if the whole team can get that goal."
Monson is confident, "I'm pretty excited just to see how everybody grows individually, to see how everybody changes over this year."
Grosse encourages students to come out for tennis, "It's a really great sport in a lot of ways that people don't tend to appreciate. It's good for any skill level, any age level. We've taken people that have never picked up a racket before.
"It's been really cool to see the people who stick around and enjoy it and can understand some of that."
She goes to school activity fairs and engages with new high school students. Grosse said a silver lining to being forced into an indoor practice at Boeckman is exposure, "It's actually one of the benefits of being in the middle school gym. People are like, oh tennis."
Stoneburg urges, "Join the team if you can."
FHS hosts Lakeville South on Tuesday, April 8 at 3:30 pm. On Monday, April 14 they go to New Prague for a triangular that includes New Ulm and starts at 2:30 pm. The next day they entertain Prior Lake at 3:30 pm with Rosemount coming to town on Thursday, April 17 at 3:30 pm.
South, North, and Shakopee are tough competitors. Top-five rated Rochester Mayo is a Section 1AA favorite. Grosse says the squad has a couple of nice local rivalries, "Faribault and Farmington have usually been pretty close. We kind of alternate. Like one wins then the other wins the next year.
"If we beat Northfield in a match, we would be ecstatic because we've been close for a few years. And that would be fabulous to beat them." The teams meet on May 5 at FHS.
"But ultimately our goal is to see growth, to see progress, and to see the joy."
The regular season is scheduled to conclude on May 6. The Tigers play their home matches on the high school campus, "(The courts) still seem pretty new. We still have a couple of trees that are growing, so the sun will get in your eyes. The courts are brand new. They're perfect," proclaimed Monson.
