By Clay Whittington
The Belton Journal
James Stinson is running out of time, but it is nothing new.
In a little more than a week, the Tigers and Lady Tigers will conclude their summer vacations and return to the courts for the first day of practice in advance of the upcoming season. Then, following just four days together, the squad travels for its opening match.
The timeline is compact and approaching quickly, but Belton’s head coach is accustomed to the hectic pace.
“That is the norm for this time of year,” Stinson said. “We’re going to do a lot of challenge matches in a short amount of time and just continue building off what we were doing in May. We’ve got to get our lineup in order as best we can as quickly as we can.
“I’m lucky that tennis is adjustable, and what we look like on Day 1 is not going to be what we look like on Day 35 or whenever. So, initially, I’m just looking to see who got out and worked during the summer and improved and who sat on the couch and ate potato chips.”
The Tigers and Lady Tigers begin practicing Aug. 5, when they will also hold tryouts to usher in new teammates and determine rankings on the roster. The preseason, however, ends Aug. 9 at China Spring with the start of the regular-season schedule.
After traveling to China Spring, Belton relocates to Robinson for a second match before concluding its first week with a trip to Waco Midway the following day.
Last year, the Tigers and Lady Tigers finished their team tennis season with a 5-2 district record to place third in the final standings. In the playoffs, Belton was defeated by Montgomery Lake Creek in the bi-district round.
Building on the success, the Tigers and Lady Tigers each placed third at the spring district tournament, advancing three players – Masyn Knight (girls singles) and Nick Repka and Anya Jinadatha (mixed doubles) – to regionals.
Knight and Repka are entering their senior seasons, while Jinadatha is set to be a sophomore.
“We only graduated five seniors last year,” Stinson said. “So, we were a young team last year, and we’re still not going to have a real heavy senior class again with about four this year. Almost all our girls are coming back, though, and we have some up-and-comers, who might be able to make a splash.
“For the guys, we graduated four, but we’ve got some players on the junior varsity team and some incoming freshmen that may surprise a few people. Now, we just have to wait and see what happens.”
With the torrid pace Stinson will soon encounter rapidly drawing closer, he is attempting to enjoy his final days away from overseeing the program while also contending with the task of changing residences, and time is running out.
Like he will on the court, though, Stinson is embracing the situation.
“I’m just trying to get everything taken care of before I start getting a lot busier than I am now,” he said, “but I’m getting excited. I’m looking forward to the season and just hope all the kids have been doing what they were supposed to.
“If so, it should make for an exciting season.”
