Aaron Thompson – Evansville Tennis Center

Aaron Thompson Commits to Xavier

Ryan McDaniel — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 19:14:40 +0000

Mater Dei senior and 2017 IHSAA State-finalist, Aaron Thompson verbally committed this week to continue his education and playing career at Xavier University. Aaron , who has been ranked as high as top 30 in the Midwest, according to USTA rankings, will join a solid 2019 recruiting class for the Musketeers. Aaron will be the third player from the ETC program to play at Xavier. Kara Courtney (’05-’09) and Anthony Palmenter (’06-’10) previously played for the Musketeers.

Aaron is the 9th ETC player in the past two years to commit or sign a National Letter of Intent to play in college.

Good luck and keep up the hard work Aaron!

Aaron Thompsons Finishes Strong Season with State Finals

Ryan McDaniel — Wed, 25 Oct 2017 16:08:29 +0000

The 2017 season was a successful season for Mater Dei junior, Aaron Thompson. Aaron who played all year at number one singles, navigated his way through the IHSAA individual state championships to end up at Park Tudor HS (Indianapolis) this past weekend. He is the first boy to reach the state finals in program history. He is the second Mater Dei player in the past three years to play in the state finals (Lauren Marx). The field was set with only seven remaining eligible players. First round he played Thomas Pries of South Bend St. Joseph. Pries entered the match with a 22-0 record on the season. Aaron came out strong and never let up, beating Pries 6-3, 6-1 to set up a match against defending IHSAA State Champion, Patrick Fletchall. Fletchall defeated Brandon Wu (Memorial) last year in the final match of the State Finals. Fletchall and his teammates at Carmel High School repeated as State Team Champions this year.

The second round featured Fletchall vs Thompson, and Mac Rogers (Bloomington North) vs Sajin Smith (Perry Meridian). Thompson and Fletchall did not disappoint. Both boys battled nerves as each players had representatives of their school, friends and family in attendance for support. Each player held throughout the beginning of the first set until Fletchall broke Thompson’s serve. Aaron rallied back, breaking serve immediately to push the first set to 4-4. After a long fought game, Fletchall held serve to go up 5-4 before taking the set 6-4. Fletchall held onto the momentum and carried it into the second set where he defeated Thompson 6-2.

Later that day, Fletchall beat Mac Rogers to take home the 2017 IHSAA State Championship. The Indiana University commit, is the fourth player to win back-to-back individual state championships.

Congratulations to our ETC Boys on earning 1st and 2nd Team All SIAC

1st Team:

Aaron Thompson (Mater Dei)

Ollie Ossenberg (Castle)

Zach Woods (Memorial)

Ross Effinger (Memorial)

2nd Team:

James Vincent (Memorial)

Brandon Herr (Reitz)

Reece Stephens (Castle)

Thompson Showing Confidence

Ryan McDaniel — Fri, 08 Sep 2017 20:44:44 +0000

Great article by Kyle Sokeland of the Courier and Press. To visit the original article please click here

*This article was published Sept 1, 2017 on the Courier and Press website

EVANSVILLE – Aaron Thompson has always been a strong tennis player for the Mater Dei Wildcats.

A conference singles title and multiple state honors back that up. But looking at him now, even his coach can tell you that there is something different about him. Whatever he has changed, it seems to be working.

Almost a month into his junior season, Thompson remains undefeated on the court. Not one to toot his own horn, the Mater Dei standout is beginning to reach another level of his game.

“My season is going pretty well,” said Thompson. “I just feel great out there. I’ve had a lot of tough competition, but I feel great confidence-wise.”

Thompson came onto the scene as a freshman, compiling a 26-2 record and winning the individual Southern Indiana Athletic Conference title at No. 1 singles.

As a sophomore, he earned First Team All-State and All-SIAC honors after finishing with a 20-3 mark on the court and was the SIAC runner-up to Memorial’s Brandon Wu.

But now an upperclassman, the junior has developed a better overall game. He will attack the net more to compliment a strong serve and forehand.

“He has gotten to be more of an all-court player than he used to be,” said Mater Dei coach Christine Clements. “He has worked so hard in the offseason and he just continues to get better. We are working on some different things to improve his game, but he is playing well.”

Thompson stayed busy this summer between workouts and tournament play. He trains with the Evansville Tennis Community Association and would spend four or five days a week on the court for several hours.

He also played in several tournaments around the Midwest. His highlight came by making the Central Indiana Tennis Association Team Cup.

“I thought that I played well this summer,” said Thompson. “I made CITA Team Cup, which is where you are paired up with your district and play against other districts in the Midwest.”

Clements also sees a stronger mental approach from her No. 1 singles player. In a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Memorial’s Zach Woods Wednesday, Thompson won several long rallies to keep momentum on his side.

“He is able to hang in there during the tough points,” said Clements. “Because of all of his tournament play, he has become a lot tougher mentally.”

No. 27 Memorial prevailed 3-2 in that match to drop Mater Dei’s team record to 4-2. After winning back-to-back sectional championships, the Wildcats returned four experienced players to have a strong core for this year.

However, the rest of the lineup is still learning the ropes.

“It is a bit of a building year for us,” said Clements. “Our experienced players are very strong, so they are helping us a lot. Our younger guys are getting better pretty quickly.”

The focus for Mater Dei and Thompson will soon turn to the SIAC Tournament (September 21-22) and the sectional (September 27-30). However, teams like Castle, Memorial and Reitz have all had good showings thus far.

“I feel great, but there are a lot of tough players out there,” said Thompson. “You never know what can happen.”

Boyer and Thompson Win Midwest Qualifier

Ryan McDaniel — Tue, 13 Jun 2017 18:34:42 +0000

This past weekend, Chase Boyer accomplished something very few players have done. She won the Girls 12s Midwest Qualifier. This marks the 10th time in seven years a player from ECTA has won the Midwest Qualifier. Boyer entered the weekend as the number two seed. She won her first two matches 6-0,6-0. Her last three rounds were competitive as she played the number five, four and three seeds respectively. She beat Mischa Briggs (Indianapolis) 6-2, 7-5 in the finals to win the championship. She and Sydney Miller lost in the finals of doubles 4-8.

Aaron Thompson partnered up with Mac Rogers (Bloomington) for the second time this month to capture the Boys 18s Doubles Title. They beat Michael Koch and his partner in the second round 8-1. Thompson and Rogers would go on to win their next two rounds 8-3 and 8-6. They played Khamasi Muhiga and Alec Robillard in the finals. Thompson and Rogers won 6-4, 3-6, 1-0(9). Aaron Thompson was also a Consolation Finalist

Several Players Qualify for Midwest Closed

Ryan McDaniel — Tue, 13 Jun 2017 18:08:08 +0000

This past weekend, multiple players from the ETC Academy group competed in one of the largest tournaments of the year. The annual CITA Qualifier hosts eight age divisions throughout the city of Indianapolis and surrounding areas. Boys and Girls from the 12s to 18s age division compete to qualify for the USTA Midwest Closed. As a group, we have had a lot of success over the years, winning multiple age groups in both singles and doubles. We consistently have one of the highest Qualifying percentages of any program within CITA. This year brought the same good fortune. More than half of our players qualified for the upcoming Midwest Closed.

Two of our Kentucky players also qualified to play in the Southern Closed. Congratulations to Jon Nunez and Caleb Buckman on qualifying for the Southern Closed. Caleb Buckman (Owensboro) made it to the third round before ultimately losing the second seed in three sets.

Sarah Monesmith, Aaron Thompson, Michael Koch and Evan Bottorff competed in the 18 and Under division, and qualified. Aaron Thompson and his doubles partner Mac Rogers won the doubles championship, while Aaron also made it to the finals of the Consolation Draw only to loose in three sets.

Dev Sanapati qualified for the Boys 16s. Nichole Henning (Girls 14s) and Chase Boyer (Girls 12s) also qualified.

Congratulations to all of our players who competed in the tournament. Good luck to everyone who either automatically qualified or are waiting to qualify.

Memorial Day Weekend Brings Success on Court

Ryan McDaniel — Tue, 30 May 2017 14:23:22 +0000

For most players the holiday weekend is a great weekend to take some time off before the summer gets busy with classes and tournament play. But for some of our top players, they spent the weekend out of town playing. There were two tournaments in which our players entered. The first is the Jefforsonville Memorial Day Tournament. The other is the Midwest Level 3 – Court One Memorial Day Weekend Tournament.

As our players are gearing up for what is typically a busy summer, all 8 players posted wins with 5 of the 8 either making the finals or winning the tournament.

Three ETC players were selected to play in Okemos, MI (Court One). This tournament is a great warm-up event to the upcoming tournaments, as every player is guranteed four matches. Dev Sanapati played the Boys’ 16s and brought home two wins. Dev found himself down a set and 5-0 in his first match, before fighting back to win in a third set tiebreak. He would win again in his third match, before ultimatly losing his fourth.

Aaron Thompson played the Boys 18s. Aaron played Alan Arocho, a seeded player first round. Thompson posted a routine win of 6-1, 6-4. Thompson would go on to win two more matches over the weekend.

But perhaps the biggest tournament of the weekend goes to Chase Boyer. Boyer entered the tournament unseeeded. After winning her first match 6-1, 6-0 Boyer would play back to back seeded players. She beat Alicen Liu (#10) 6-0, 6-3; Ashley Matz (#7) 6-1, 6-2. In the quarterfinals she played Monika Glueck (Chicago District) and posted a 6-3, 6-2 victory. Her semi-final opponent was Isabella Marquart(#2). Marquart played in the March National Tournament at ETC, where she made the finals of doubles and finished top 4. Boyer took the first set 6-2. The start of the second set would be tight and competitive, but Boyer eventually pulled away to take the second set 6-1. Boyer lost in the finals to Thea Latak(#1) 6-2, 6-2.

Nichole Henning and Juleah Scarlett met in the finals of Girls’ 16s in Jeffersonville. Henning beat Scarlett 6-2, 6-2.

Caden Scarlett was the top seeded player in Jefforsonville. He would make his way to the finals before losing 6-3, 6-2.

Ollie Ossenberg and Zach Woods played in the Boys 16s age division. Both would notch wins with Ollie advancing and winning in the finals.

Congratulations to all the players this weekend. This is a great start to the summer as we all prepare for the CITA Qualifier and the Midwest Closed.

#KeepGrinding

MaddenCo USTA National – Fletchall and Allen Win

etcpoynter@gmail.com — Wed, 10 May 2017 17:57:32 +0000

This past weekend, with the help of MaddenCo, the Evansville Tennis Center hosted its third and final USTA National Junior Tournament of the year. This event, similar to January and March, was a National Level 3- meaning it is the third highest national level tournament the USTA offers. However, this past weekend brought both the Boys’ 18 age division and the Girls’ 18 age division. Players from across the United States traveled to Evansville to compete and at Wesselman Park. Several college coaches were present to watch some of the nations top players.

Local standout Aaron Thompson (Mater Dei) was the only local player originally accepted based on ranking, but Evan Bottorff (Castle) and Caleb Buckman (Owensboro, KY) played as well after accepting entrance via an alternate list. Thompson advanced to the second round, only to lose to the seventh seeded Jake Beasley (Cumming, GA) 6-4,6-1.

Allen (left) Hand (right)

Thompson recovered and won his third match against Ian Altenburg (Chaska, MN) 6-4,6-4. Thompson eventually made it to the semi-finals of the consolation draw only to lose in three sets to Patrick Lazo (Alpharetta, GA) 1-6, 7-6(8), 1-0(9).

Evan Bottorff and his doubles partner, Patrick Fletchall (Carmel, IN) advanced to the semi-finals where they lost to eventual champions, Jake Beasley and Stewart Block (Bradenton, FL) 8-6.

Buckman, who lives in Owensboro, and often trains at ETC, lost in the first round against eighth seeded Grahan Conron (Bradenton, FL) 4-6, 7-5, 1-0(5). His

Duo (left) Fletchall (right)

second match was just as close and competitive. Taylor Streda (Parkland, FL) defeated Buckman 5-7, 6-4, 1-0(8).

Kollie Allen (Lombard, IL) entered the weekend as the top ranked girl with a National Ranking of 31. Allen would prove to be the best player in the draw. Allen advanced to the finals by walkover when Sophia Reddy (Eden Prairie, MN) withdrew due to illness. Allen met Clarissa Hand (Morrestown, NJ) in the finals. Hand beat Emma Jackson (La Grange Park, IL) 7-6(9), 6-2 in the semi-finals. Allen eventually beat Hand 6-4, 6-3 Monday afternoon to take the Singles Championship.

Unseeded Natalie Moyer (Kalamazoo, MI) and Anna Smith (Venetia, PA) beat fourth seeded Bozonvic (La Grange, IL) and Henry (Franklin, TN) 8-5 to secure a spot in the Girls’ Doubles Semi-finals. In the semi-finals they played top seeded Sophia

Beasley (left) Block (right)

Reddy and Zoe Taylor (Long Grove, IL). Moyer and Smith won 9-8(8). On the other half of the draw the sister duo of Christina Hand and Clarissa Hand routinely made their way to the finals. Hand and Hand beat Moyer and Smith 8-5 to capture the Doubles Championship Monday morning.

Boy’s doubles played true to the seeds with the top seeded team of Bill Duo (Portage, MI) and Lucas Horve (Forsyth, IL) met second seeded Jake Beasley and Stewart Block. Beasley and Block eventually topped Duo and Horve 9-8(7) to take home the Doubles title.

Hand/Hand (left) Moyer/Smith (right)

Top seeded Bill Duo, ranked #11 nationally, won cruised to the finals never dropping more than five games in any match. Fifth seeded, Patrick Fletchall entered the tournament ranked #187 beat both the number two and four seeded players on his way to the Boys Finals. Fletchall eventually upset Duo winning 5-7, 6-2, 1-0(4) to take home the singles championship.

Results: To see final and complete draws please click on the event.

National Junior Tournament Brings Top Talent

etcpoynter@gmail.com — Mon, 01 May 2017 19:10:13 +0000

This weekend, May 6-8th, the Evansville Tennis Center will host its third USTA Junior National Tournament of the year. MaddenCo’s sponsored event will bring 64 players to the City of Evansville. The USTA National Level 3 – Sponsored by MaddenCo will hold singles and doubles for both Boys 18s and Girls’ 18s events. Players from all over the country will be competing over three days. Players as high as top 25 in the country are competing in this event. Many of these players have already signed or comitted to play in college. Aaron Thompson of Mater Dei HS, is the only local player who qualified in either draw.

With the help of our sponsor, MaddenCo , the Evansville Tennis Center continues to host bigger and bigger events. This tournament will be the largest high-level junior event Evansville has ever hosted. The tournament will be played at Wesselman Park, and play begins Saturday May 6 at 8:00am. For updates please check back in a few days for copies of the draw. Any other information regarding the USTA National Level 3 – Sponsored by MaddenCo, please visit the Tournament Page on USTA. Here you will find specific match times, and draws.

Come out and support these players as they compete for a National Championship!