Alumni – Page 10 – AUSTIN TENNIS ACADEMY

Austin Mayo Commits To Northern Colorado

Austin Mayo, a life-long ATA junior athlete, committed to extend his academic and athletic careers at the University of Northern Colorado this coming fall.

“I couldn’t see myself anywhere else like I could at UNC,” Austin said. “I loved everything about the campus and the people at the school.”

For Austin, the college process was a three year endeavor, and Northern Colorado didn’t enter the picture until two and half years into it. Like many, Mayo created a first list of schools, then revised over time, and, with the help of Coach Strecker, his primary coach, he eventually pinpointed UNC.

“I really was set on playing Division 1 tennis so Coach Streck helped me make a list of about ten schools that competed in Division 1 tennis, Northern Colorado being one of them. I didn’t think much of any school on my new list at first and then I called the UNC coach and instantly connected with him,” Mayo said. “Surprisingly, I knew 2 of the players already on the team from juniors and I thought the coach himself was just as cool, if not cooler than Streck.”

UNC is located in scenic Greeley, Colorado, near Fort Collins in the north central part of the state about 45 minutes from Denver. For Mayo, the location was a major factor in why this was the right school for him.

“I ended up choosing UNC because it has a lot of outdoor activities close to campus,” Mayo said. “To be honest with you I will probably be out white water rafting, hiking, and skiing more than I will be in school. Northern Colorado has a great campus and a very favorable girl to guy ratio. It is all set up like A&M, the city built around the school, but you can see the mountains at UNC in the distance. It also is about 1000 miles from home which kills my mom.”

Academically, the university offers both undergraduate and graduate degree paths, with a total enrollment of about 12,500 students. Austin plans to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports and Rehabilitation.

“At UNC, they give students the opportunity to use new technology and work hands on with patients at companies in Colorado as interns,” Austin said. “They told me during the campus tour that UNC is known across the nation for its sports rehabilitation program.”

Athletically, Mayo will join a UNC Bears team that competes in the Big Sky Conference of Division 1 NCAA tennis.

“I am looking forward to being a part of the tennis team at UNC,” Austin said. “They just hired a new coach a few years ago and since then he has strengthened his team to one of the best in the Big Sky conference. In the four years that I will be there, he told me he plans on winning our conference and maybe going a step further. I’m not that versed in the athletic college talk so I don’t know what a “step further” means but he got me pretty excited about it.”

Mayo has been a part of ATA for 12 years. In 2004, he was awarded the Lindsey Pereira Scholarship, and has received it ever since. This scholarship is awarded to the player who possesses and demonstrates the characteristics reflecting what Lindsey represents both on and off the court: passionate ambassadorship, contagious enthusiasm, conviction and achievement.

“There probably isn’t enough room on the webpage to tell you all the things ATA has done to prepare me for college and life after. The staff, the families, the alumni, and everyone else that has come and been a part of the ATA family has influenced my life. I was given the Lindsey Pereira Scholarship in 2004 and I have been lucky to keep it since then. Over the years I started understanding exactly what that scholarship meant to my family and me and I was humbled to think that a group of people had so much faith and trust in me because they saw my potential to grow, not only as a tennis player, but as a person. The coaches at ATA hold their players to a high standard because they see the potential in us to reach whatever goal we set for ourselves and drive us to reach it every day,” Mayo said.

“To sum all of that up, ATA has instilled in me the confidence to set high goals and drive myself to achieve them, whether they be conference titles in tennis or a higher position in a company. Also, ATA is about giving back. We have so many charities that help benefit the less fortunate around the world and the scholarships that they give out each year. All of this has taught me to never take anything for granted and be grateful for the opportunities that are given to you.”

Congratulations, Austin! The ATA community will be rooting for you and the UNC Bears for the next 4 years!

ATA Alum Blake Davis Beats Nations Top Team

ATA alum and current Florida State University Seminole Blake Davis and partner Dominic Controne dominated the number one doubles team in the nation this past Friday.

In a dual match versus Virginia, Davis and Controne devastated the top team of Jarmere Jenkins and Mac Styslinger for an 8-2 win.

Following the victory, Davis and Controne jumped from number 42 in the nation in NCAA D1 Doubles, to number 17.

Davis is 17-3 on the year in doubles play now at number one for his team, and 7-7 in singles mostly at line 4.

To follow Blake’s progress, check seminoles.com, or follow twitter.com/FSU_MTennis.

Josh Hagar To Join Notre Dame Fighting Irish

ATA College Prep graduate and Academy veteran Josh Hagar committed to pursue his athletic and academic goals at the University of Notre Dame this coming fall.

“What set Notre Dame apart from all the other schools was that I felt like it was the perfect fit,” Josh said. “Not just a good fit, but a perfect fit.”

Josh ultimately selected Notre Dame after narrowing down his list to five schools. He took official visits to Harvard, Princeton,

Northwestern, Rice and Notre Dame.

“Everyone I met on my visit (not just athletes) seemed like they had really similar goals and interests as me, and ultimately those were the kind of people I wanted to be around,” Josh said. “Also, the amount of opportunities post-college really stood out to me as an important factor.”

The University of Notre Dame is an independent Catholic university located in South Bend, Indiana. Notre Dame is one of America’s leading institutions for both undergraduate and postgraduate studies. For Josh, it is the Business school that gets him most excited.

“Notre Dame’s Mendoza School of Business offers a managerial entrepreneurship major, which I am really looking forward to,” Josh said. “Entrepreneurship has always interested me because of its unpredictability. I have found that any great entrepreneur is always willing to accept challenges and work hard to achieve whatever endeavor(s) they wish to accomplish.”

Josh will join a top 25 ranked program in the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame is switching from the Big East Conference to the Atlantic Coast Conference, so Josh will compete against schools like Florida State, Wake Forest, North Carolina and Duke.

“Athletically, I am ecstatic to have the opportunity to represent a top 25 program and compete against the best teams in the country,” Josh said. “There is so much enthusiasm and tradition regarding Notre Dame’s athletics and I look forward to contributing.”

In the past few weeks, Josh visited the campus and attended a football game. For a school with such a vast influence, it was the intimate feel of the campus that stood out most to Josh.

“The first thing I liked about the campus was its size,” Josh said. “Everything is compact and within short walking distances with no roads, just pedestrian sidewalks. It is very pleasant and peaceful. I believe Notre Dame has a reputation for being such a big school because of its athletic history, but from being on the campus you would never guess it. Everything is pristine and well kept with beautiful scenery and amazing buildings within a compact and personal campus.”

Josh has been a part of ATA since shortly after its creation. He has been a student of the College Prep program since before that name existed, and now he personifies the best of what the program offers. Josh will leave behind a legacy, not only of hard work in the classroom and on the court, but also of exemplary citizenship in the community. Josh worked extensively with A Glimmer of Hope Foundation through Playing For Glimmer – a program that he helped to create – where he raised money to fund water wells, schools and health posts in rural Ethiopia.

“ATA has played a huge role in my college process: firstly, being from ATA. I have learned that the ATA logo is one of the most recognizable and sought after logos than any other academy in the country. When college coaches see the ATA ball, they seem to want to introduce themselves and get to know you. I feel like I gained a lot of exposure that way just by wearing ATA clothes. Another important element ATA has played in my process has been the coaching/mentoring staff: Coach Notis and Coach Newman particularly. I began working with Coach Notis when I was nine and he really taught me to always fall back on my love of the game. Even when tennis seemed tough, Coach Notis always managed to make it fun for me, and I have taken the lesson of making tennis fun throughout my entire career. I also would like to thank Coach Newman as he played an amazing role in my college process: from initiating the option of me to take a gap year, to calling college coaches on my behalf, to working with me in private lessons multiple times a week. I would not be where I am without the unbelievable support and mentoring of the ATA staff,” Josh said.

“ATA has taught me so many things, both in life and in tennis. I believe hard work, discipline, and time management are three of the most important traits to embody, and I plan on utilizing them in college. In addition, I believe if you can parlay those attributes into community influence and encouragement, you have something very special. That is what the Notre Dame tennis team has been doing the past few years, and I am very excited to contribute to the already sterling community of athletes there.”

Good luck at Notre Dame, old friend, from the entire ATA community!

ATA Alum Colton Malesovas Earns ITA Regional Title

Whitman College Sophomore and ATA alum Colton Malesovas fought his way to the USTA/ITA Regional Singles Championship this past weekend.

Colton, on the right, practices over the summer at ATA in preperation for the season.

Malesovas took down the two-time defending champion and current Whitman teammate Andrew La Cava, before eliminating two more opponents on his way to the Northwest Conference crown.

Read the full story about Colton’s journey by clicking this link. Congratulations, Colton!

Liam Leddy to Land at University of Chicago

ATA College Prep senior Liam Leddy will pursue higher education and athletic aspirations at the University of Chicago this coming fall, where he will compete as a Maroon on the varsity men’s tennis team.

“Overall, I chose Chicago because it offers me the opportunity to study at a highly reputable institution among people who are all uniquely intellectual, and also to pursue a national championship,” Leddy said.

Liam also applied to Trinity College in Connecticut, Macalester College in St. Paul, Stanford, Austin College in Sherman, and Claremont McKenna.

He explained that it was the schools reputation for being a bit quirky while maintaining high academic standards that caught his interest.

“The people at Chicago are all a little bit different and that appealed to me,” Liam said. “I’ve always been a little bit different myself (I think), so going to a school that embraced and celebrated that really did, and still does, excite me.”

The University of Chicago campus is located in the city’s Hyde Park neighborhood on Lake Michigan. The 215-acre campus was designated as a botanic garden in 1997. It boasts a blend of English Gothic and award-winning modern buildings.

“I visited campus the summer after my sophomore year, and found it quite beautiful,” Liam said. “The mix of modern and gothic architecture is actually quite interesting. Of course, it was in summer, so everything was actually green, but nonetheless I loved it.”

Liam will enter a highly competitive and nationally recognized academic environment. The roughly 5 thousand undergraduate students all choose from 50 offered majors and 29 minors. The university is among the leaders in areas like Law, Economics and the Sciences.

“I’m most excited academically about finding out what I actually want to major in,” Liam said. “I have some vague ideas, but I’m not positive. At Chicago students spend their first four semesters completing “the core”, which Chicago is known for. I hope that having such a rigorous and thorough set of freshman and sophomore classes will allow me to investigate career options more proficiently.”

Liam joins a Maroon’s men’s tennis team that reached the quarterfinals of the University Athletic Association Men’s Tennis Championships in 2012. The team finished with an 11-9 overall record, after finishing the tournament in 5^th place.

“Athletically, I’m really excited to be joining a team that’s top 15 in DIII, and really wants to win a national championship,” Liam said. “When I visited campus again this past October, Coach Bertrand and all the guys on the team made it clear that their goal was nothing less than winning the national championship. So joining a team that is very competitive and willing to sacrifice to succeed is really awesome and exciting. That’s something I feel like I have at ATA; all the coaches are very competitive and want the students to win. I feel like that’s been very valuable to me, and I didn’t want to lose it in college.”

Liam joined ATA and started playing tennis just before turning 14. He moved up through the Junior Development program all the way to ATA College Prep.

“Being in the College Prep program has been great,” Liam said. “I already have to manage training at a high level with college level classes, so hopefully that will ease my transition into college.”

The ATA community is invited to join Liam, and teammate Eliot Blatt, as we celebrate their college choices at the ATA Signing Ceremony at 6pm in the Fitness Center.

From ATA CEO Jack Newman –

“Liam started tennis late. He started in a PE class we offered for home-schooled kids. Josh Hagar was one of Liam’s first coaches. That was in the fall of 2007. Liam caught the tennis bug and has worked consistently hard since then to become an accomplished super champ player. When you start late like Liam, it is challenging. You are often training with smaller, younger kids and that can be annoying. That did not deter Liam. He worked his way up through the Texas competitive system and he worked his way up through the ATA system. Liam is headed to the university of Chicago, one of the most challenging academic environments in the country. The same determination and work ethic that allowed Liam to reach this level of accomplishment will allow him to continue that improvement and success in college.”

Oliver Seifert Commits To Claremont McKenna College

ATA senior Oliver Seifert committed to attend Claremont McKenna College this coming fall, where he will join the CMS Stags varsity men’s tennis team, while pursuing an education in computer science.

“My decision to apply to Claremont McKenna was based on my wanting to study computer science at an academically highly ranked school while playing college tennis,” Oliver said.

Oliver also seriously considered Rice University in Houston Texas as well and RPI, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, in Troy, New York.

Seifert was introduced to Claremont McKenna by ATA CEO Jack Newman, a Claremont alum himself.

“At the beginning of my application process I matched both academic and tennis rankings for schools who offered a computer science program,” Seifert said. “I then showed the list to Jack Newman, who added a few schools, one of them being CMC.”

Claremont McKenna is one of the nation’s top liberal arts schools. It is part of a consortium of five colleges that are each fairly small (CMC has a student population of 1300) and each has its own identity. The schools share some facilities like the library, and students are allowed to take 30 percent of classes at any of the other schools.

“What ultimately set CMC apart from the other options was the balance between academics and athletics as well as the location and the overall impression I had of the campus when I visited,” Oliver said. “It seemed like the perfect fit for me.”

Seifert explained that the ability to personalize his course schedule based on his interests was a major role in selecting Claremont McKenna.

“I look forward to studying computer science in an inspiring environment and being able to choose my classes depending on my interests, e.g. if I decide to take a more science-oriented course I can take a class at Harvey Mudd,” Seifert said. “I like that aspect of flexibility when choosing my courses.”

The CMS athletic teams are made up of students from Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd and Scripps. Oliver will take the court with the nation’s #4-ranked Div. III men’s tennis team.

“Athletically, I am most excited about being part of the CMS tennis team,” Oliver said. “My goal is to make it to the top 6 line-up, playing against great teams like Amherst, Williams, Emory or Middlebury, just to name a few. The CMS tennis facilities are overwhelming, and I can’t wait to join the great team that Coach Settles and his coaching team have worked with so successfully.”

The Claremont colleges are situated in southern California, about 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles in a suburban setting at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains.

“When I visited the Claremont colleges last year, I was impressed by the individual character of each campus,” Oliver explained. “I loved the landscaping and the lush Southern Californian climate. Once a year there is a “Ski-Beach Day”, when the students get to ski in the morning and go to the beach in the afternoon. The small town of Claremont not only has beautiful tree-lined streets, but its “Village” is made up of boutiques, art galleries, restaurants and a cinema, all right next to the Claremont colleges.”

Oliver came to Austin Tennis Academy after moving from Germany in 2010. He hadn’t played competitive tennis in over a year, after spending a year at a boarding school in England.

“I’ve come a long way since then, working hard with coaches who were excellent teachers and who always supported and challenged me,” Oliver said. “Thanks to their guidance and my passion for tennis I was able to thrive and succeed on and off the court. I have learned great lessons of perseverance and leadership and have experienced team spirit and the desire to give back to the community.

All this has shaped me and made me the person I am now, and I feel ready to join the CMS tennis team, which will be my new tennis family for the next four years.”

Come join Oliver, along with teammates Sam Loudon and Rob Steinwedell, as they sign their college commitment papers at the ATA Signing Ceremony this Thursday at the ATA Fitness Center.

Andrew Parks To Attend Air Force Academy

ATA College Prep senior Andrew Parks will attend the United Stated Air Force Academy this coming fall, where he will pursue the next steps in his athletic and academic careers as a Falcon on the men’s tennis team and as a freshman, or a Fourth Year Cadet, at the Academy.

“I knew this was the place I wanted to go after my official visit in September, and was very excited to find out I earned the USAFA appointment and Congressional Nomination on Christmas Eve,” Parks said.

Andrew researched the Air Force Academy after receiving an email from Coach Dan Oosterhous, the head coach of the Falcon’s, and found the combination of great athletics and great academics for which he was looking.

“I was intrigued by the small teacher-student ratio and the teacher availability for the cadets,” Andrew explained. “I also liked how there are academic advisors for the tennis team, so I felt I would be in good hands to be a successful Air Force cadet. I kept in constant contact with Coach Oosterhous on a weekly basis and knew this is the coach I want to play for in college.”

Andrew explained that the application process is very demanding, and is a major challenge in itself to prove that the Air Force Academy is something the applicant truly wants. To get an appointment, each applicant must complete essays, meet standardized test score requirements, pass eye and medical exams, take and pass the Candidate Fitness Assessment (CFA), send transcripts and interview with an Air Liaison Officer (Captain John Ellis for Andrew). Then, each applicant must send similar applications to many of the Texas Senators and Representative’s to receive a nomination. To be fully accepted, you must receive a nomination and an appointment.

“If you do not want it, then you won’t get it done. It is not the common application at all,” Andrew said. “Going through the application process was the most demanding part, but I had support from my coaches, teachers, and my future coach at Air Force, Coach Oosterhous.”

Andrew completed all of these requirements, and did so admirably, receiving the highest CFA scores for any freshman entering the men’s tennis team in the past 4 years. He received a nomination from Congressman Sam Johnson, and an Appointment from the USAFA.

The Air Force Academy is settled in the picturesque Rocky Mountains of Colorado Springs, Colorado. All graduates of the 4-year university earn a Bachelor of Science degree, no matter their major, due to the core requirements including courses in sciences, engineering, military studies, and many others. Most of a cadet’s first 2 years at the Academy are focused on the core curriculum, as it makes up more than 60 percent of all undergraduate courses.

“I am most excited about the great education I will be receiving,” Andrew said. “I can’t wait to learn and challenge myself with the high-level curriculum. I love the small teacher-student ratio. The discipline, and the broad range of classes available at the USAFA was appealing to me as well to give me the best opportunity to decide what future is best for me.”

Andrew joins an Air Force Falcons men’s tennis team that boasted an 8-5 home record last season, finishing the year at 10-12 overall. He will compete in the Mountain West Conference, against schools like San Diego State, New Mexico, Wyoming, Colorado State, and more.

“I am excited to play Division 1 college tennis in a strong conference like the Mountain West,” Andrew said. “I am looking forward to future successes in my collegiate career and the great memories I will make along the way with the team.”

Andrew gave credit to many at ATA and ATA CP for their guidance and support since coming to Austin.

“ATA gave me the opportunity to meet Coach Oosterhous, and pursue college tennis at the United States Air Force Academy,” Andrew said. “I learned how hard you have to work to achieve goals, and this was the goal I pursued. Coach Iankov trained me to achieve the highest scores on the CFA exam in the last 4 recruiting classes for Air Force men’s tennis. I gained more discipline and accountability from Coach Newman and Coach Doug. Coach Doug influenced me to become a young man ready to take a blow and this is very important to be a successful Air Force Cadet. Academically, Carol taught me the importance of organization and not procrastinating. I will be taking the planner with me to USAFA.”

After his visit and connection with the coach, Andrew was fully confident that the USAFA was the right place for him.

“It was too good to be true,” Andrew said. “I knew this was the place for me to excel in my life to become a citizen of significance. Coach Oosterhous and I had a great connection throughout this process, and I am excited for what the future holds for me as an NCAA Division 1 Student-Athlete at the United States Air Force Academy.”

Update from DePaul Freshman and ATA Alum Aaron Chaffee

Hello all,

Hope all is going well for you back in Austin. I thought I’d give you a little insight into life at DePaul University for a first-year student. The first few weeks have been a little hectic trying to adjust to a new schedule new people. The hardest thing that I’ve found about the differences between college and living with Coach Newman is that I don’t know what to do with all of my free time. Don’t get me wrong, I’m keeping plenty busy, but just know that no matter where you go to school, nothing will be more demanding then the College Prep program.

My schedule is pretty heavy this fall since it’s technically our offseason. I wake up at 5:30 in the morning to eat breakfast before 6:15 morning workouts until 8. Then I go back to my room to take a nap until my 9:40 class which runs until 11:40. Then I grab lunch and go to the training room at 1 o’clock to get treatment for a wrist injury. Then I have to walk about a mile to the tennis courts and we are required to be at the courts by 1:45 for a 2 o’clock practice so that when our coach shows up he can start doing whatever he wants. After practice I shower then eat dinner as I’m going to my night classes on Tuesday and Wednesday from 6-9:15. Then I start my homework, and am normally asleep by 12 or 12:30.

The major difference I’ve found between college and junior tennis is that no matter how hard you think you worked as a junior, people in college work harder than you. The level of practices and workouts are insane. For the first 45 minutes of every practice, we just rally down the middle and crosscourt, and for every ball you miss, it’s a push up then you run to get the ball. Outside of tennis, I am really enjoying getting to meet a ton of new people every day, and seeing everything that Chicago has to offer. The thing that is definitely the most challenging about college is trying to balance all of the opportunities that present themselves to you while here. Luckily all freshmen are required to complete 4 study hours in the Academic Advising office, but in all honesty I probably spent more like 15 hours there last week completing 3 separate papers for 3 different classes all due last Thursday.

I think that if I could go back to high school and give myself one piece of advice, it would be to ensure that I got all of my schoolwork done as soon as it was assigned. That is the biggest difference between college and high school. The professors don’t care if you finish your work; they’re getting paid either way. Other than that gloomy piece of advice, I hope you all are kicking butt in your tournaments and working hard.See you soon,

Aaron

An Update From ATA Alum Christine Schatz

Hello Coach Newman and ATA Friends

It’s been awhile since I’ve updated you on my tennis and school experiences over the past two years at Rockhurst University. I can’t believe I’m already going to be a junior, school has flown by. Playing tennis in college has been a rewarding experience even though difficult at times. My first day of practice my freshman year started at 6:00 am and I had to run 4 ½ miles with my new teammates. This was the longest I have ever run before so it was quite a shock. Now, I’m not surprised when we have early morning workouts everyday and weekends. It did take some time to get used to but with the help of great teammates, it got easier. My coach used to play at University of Kentucky and our assistant coach played at BYU. They definitely train us like a DI school which has the helped us achieve a #1 seating in conference this year and the men’s team made it to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament in Florida. This was especially exciting since this was the first time this has been done at Rockhurst. Over these two years, I’ve been playing line 3 doubles and either 5 or 6 singles. The experience at ATA has helped me be able to balance my school work and tennis schedule which can get pretty hectic during the spring season.

Another really neat experience that occurred this year was our spring break trip to Orlando. During the break, we played four matches and even got to go visit the Bollettieri Academy! It was amazing to see where some great tennis pros have played (even where Agassi hopped the fence to run away). We even got to meet Nick Bollettieri himself at the end of our tour.

I’m spending this summer at Stanford University helping to coach adults and younger students in their summer tennis program.

Hope everything is going well!

Christine Schatz

Colton Malesovas Commits to Whitman College

Colton Malesovas will pursue his academic and athletic goals at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. After extensively researching colleges all over the country, Colton confidently concluded that Whitman was the place for him.

“I decided that a small liberal arts school with very strong academics and a respectable and ranked D-3 tennis program were the most important qualities,” Colton said. “Once I knew what I was looking for, I was able to narrow it down.”

Colton first heard about Whitman when his college councelor suggested it as a good fit for his academic desires. He also looked into Pomona College, Claremont-McKenna, Washington & Lee and Sewanee.

“Coach Jeff Northam’s attitude and commitment towards recruiting me as a player ultimately set Whitman apart,” Colton said. “Once I took my visit to the school, I was completely sold. Both Coach Northam and his entire team were extremely welcoming and made me feel right at home in a place that is very, very far from my own home. “

Whitman is an independent liberal arts and sciences undergraduate college in the scenic southeastern corner of Washington. It has an enrollment of 1450 students, with a 9:1 student to teacher ratio.   “They have an extremely modern and extensive science department that allows pre-meds and science majors to do in depth studies as undergrads,” Colton said. “Because Whitman is only a college and has no post-grad programs, kids are able to do research along side their professors as early as freshman year. I’m really looking forward to taking advantage of that rare opportunity.”

The Whitman men’s tennis team finished last season with a 20-4 record and ranked 20th in the nation. The have a 3-2 record to start the 2011 season, with their home opener this Saturday.

“Whitman has a competitive team that finished the year with a good ranking in D-3, so I’m really excited to come in, play in the lineup, and improve the team,” Colton said.

Colton explained that his time at ATA has prepared him for any challenge he may face while in college; that the demanding schedule and support system taught him to get through difficult times in tennis, and he will be able to apply that to what he faces going forward.

“I’ve learned how to fight through problems both physically and mentally to the best of my ability because of ATA,” Colton said. “I’ve also learned how to balance my time around a tough practice schedule through ATA. The rigorous training schedule coupled with my tough workload at St. Stephen’s has been a REALLY big challenge at times, and I’ve had to make adjustments in order to achieve a level of success that I am comfortable with. I know that Whitman will challenge me in both academics and athletics, but I also realize that it won’t be a new challenge. In a way, I’ve already done it.”

Offerdahl Commits to the Commodores

Austin Tennis Academy senior Jeff Offerdahl announced this week that he will join the Vanderbilt University Commodores after finishing his final year at St. Steven’s Episcopal School.

“The visit ultimately set Vanderbilt apart from other schools,” Jeff said. “It was my favorite visit because it had all I was looking for, which was a cohesive team that I could really see myself getting along with, a coach that I felt could develop me as a player the best (also a great, young, experienced assistant), and a campus that I really could see myself fitting into.”

This decision is the culmination of months of research and hard work beginning with an unofficial visit this past summer. Jeff and his parents traveled to Nashville to see the Vanderbilt campus and he immediately loved it. He also considered schools like Duke, UNC, Illinois and Notre Dame, before landing on Vandy.

“Vanderbilt has the combination of great tennis and great academics that Jeff is looking for,” said Jeff’s lifelong coach, Jack Newman. “Also, Coach D. at Vandy is one of the best developers in the country.”

Coach Newman explained that the choice to attend Vanderbilt came on the back end of a long college selection process beginning a year ago with emails to coaches, lots of phone conversations, unofficial visits and competing in front of coaches at national events.

“Jeff had 10 meetings with coaches at Kalamazoo after he was out of the tournament to help set up and pick 5 official visits,” Coach Newman said. “He visited all of the schools, evaluated them on 17 factors, and picked Vandy.”

Jeff is currently the number 3 ranked player in Texas, compiling a singles record of 34-5, and the number 14 ranked player in the nation, with a record of 93-28. Jeff joins a Commodores team that finished the year ranked 38th in the country and seeded 3rd in the region.

“I am most excited about having an immediate impact on the team,” Jeff said. “So far, 4 other recruits other than myself have committed. I am ecstatic to take this program, along with the other recruits from the class of 2015, to the next level and to heights it’s never been to, like winning a national championship. I also look forward to developing into the best player I can become with the help of Coach Duvenhage, who I know is going to help me quite a bit.”

Jeff is set to graduate from St. Stephen’s Episcopal School in May before enrolling at Vanderbilt in August. He explained how his time at St. Stephen’s has prepared him for the challenges of college academics.

“I know Vandy is a tremendous academic institution, so I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Jeff said.

Jeff has been part of the Austin Tennis Academy since it’s beginning. Coach Newman and the rest of the staff have watched him grow and mature into the young man he is today.

“His work ethic will bring up every player on the Vandy team,” Coach Newman said. “Jeff brings a level of intangibles as a player, competitor and teammate that made him highly recruited by many coaches in the country.”

A main goal of the ATA Academy program is to make players’ last practices and workouts at ATA just as challenging as the first practices in college.

“I think ATA has done a great job preparing me for college,” Jeff said. “I have been on 5 visits and see what the practices are like. The intensity of ATA practices and fitness sessions are not that far off. For some, college tennis might be a whole new level of practice and competing. But I feel that ATA has done a tremendous job pushing me to my potential, whether the coaches being on me in practice or in fitness, or to Coach Newman helping me in school and other personal things.”

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