Warriors Turn to Reflection and Preparation in Pursuit of CBL Climb
As the Worthington Christian High School boys tennis team geared up for its opener, coach Derek Stone added something to the list of standard equipment. Along with the racquets, balls, and uniforms, he gave each player a journal.
“We want players to write down their basic plan for each match and then evaluate how that plan went after it,” Stone said. “We want them to record what things went well and what things they (need to improve on).”
Learning from each match could help the Warriors elevate from their 7-9 finish overall last year. Worthington Christian placed fourth in the Central Buckeye League with a 4-3 record, finishing behind Columbus Academy (7-0), Bexley (6-1), and Grandview (5-2).
The Warriors have a senior-laden team and a solid core of underclassmen, but WC will need strong mental focus when it faces the state’s elite teams, Academy and Bexley.
Senior Matthew Paul, a Second-Team All-League selection last year, is hoping he will have a lot of positive things to record in his journal.
“I want to just focus on the relationships with the other players on this team,” Paul said. “Once college starts, you can’t turn back time and get a chance to play with this team again.”
Paul is one of three seniors returning this year, joining Dylan Decker and Ethan Reale. Decker (singles) and junior Noah Shemenski and graduate Cooper Maehl (doubles) were a round away from qualifying for the district tournament.
The Warriors haven’t had a player reach the district singles tournament since Ajai Smith made it in 2018. However, the team qualified for the district doubles tournament in 2018, 2019, and 2023.
Joel Montgomery (WC ’14), who lost in a Division II state singles quarterfinal in 2014, is the team’s last state qualifier.
In addition to the graduation of Maehl, Worthington Christian lost two key contributors on last year’s team when junior Jacob Sanders, an Honorable Mention All-League last year, and senior Daniel Ji decided to play volleyball this spring.
The Warriors return sophomore Luke Stone, who missed all of last season after undergoing ankle surgery. Freshmen Kaleb Farber and Ethan Bourgeois, who played first and second singles, respectively, for the middle school team last year, could make an impact on the team.
Some of the players have remained focused in the offseason, playing USTA tournaments, working with local pros, and participating in tennis clinics during the summer. Additionally, Coach Stone has been offering open indoor courts since the end of the winter break.
“We’ve seen a big difference,” he said. “The kids who work on their game in the offseason are much more prepared for the year.”
That preparation will be tested in the Central Buckeye League against two of the state’s top programs. The Vikings placed third in the OTCA Division II state team tournament and had four players reach state, including singles champion Nason Lo. Bexley returns junior Henry Lessard, a two-time state champion seeking his third title this spring.
“We have to elevate our game to hold our ground against them,” Paul said.
“Obviously, you’ve seen the best of the best by the time you get to sectionals,” Coach Stone added. “It’s good for our players to see the difference from a kid who picks up a racquet when practice starts in March versus kids who are playing all year round in tournaments all over the country.”
To combat the elevated level of talent, Coach Stone said his team has been focused on conditioning. The key to the season comes down to writing down what a player does correctly, rather than dwelling on what went wrong.
“You have to have a short memory. Forget the bad points, games, or sets and move on,” Coach Stone said.