Junior Team Tennis Is Back!
Junior Team Tennis Fall season is quickly approaching! JTT is an awesome opportunity for players to compete within a team environment, set goals, be exposed to challenging competition, receive on-court coaching and play for something greater than individual merit. Teams are based on age and development level. It is a perfect first competitive experience for JD and QuickStart players (there is even an 8&U Red Ball division) who have never played tournaments and it is a valuable vehicle for more experienced players to work on various areas of their game. League winners in several levels will represent Austin at the state tournament this November.
Tentative start of the season is September 26, and the deadline to register your child to play is Monday, September 13. Matches are played Sunday afternoons and consist of 8 game pro sets (2 sets to 4 in 10U divisions). A typical day begins with a warm-up 30 minutes prior to start time; matches last approximately two and a half hours. Players should plan to stay through the end of the match and support their teammates. Half of the matches are played at ATA and the other half at the opponent’s sites in Austin. For our regular tournament participants, we will be playing a one-weekend event instead of a weekly Sunday afternoon league. Dates for the event are not yet determined.
Commitment: Teams consist of 4-8 players who must commit to playing a majority of the matches. If an occasional conflict arises, it is imperative to communicate with the coach to prevent a default. For each match, teams are assigned a coach/academy player. There have been times when coaches are traveling and academy players are in tournaments and we may ask the help of a parent.
Cost: $150 for the season. Players must be a current member of the USTA or be willing to register. Become a member online at www.usta.com and click on membership. Junior memberships are free and include access to all USTA tournaments, leagues and a subscription to various tennis publications. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee the number of matches per season, because it depends upon how many teams register and how well the team does.
ATA parents please check your inbox for an email from Coach Brian Notice with information about how to register your child to play on one of ATA’s teams. If you have any questions, please reply to our JTT Coordinators, Coach AJ Garcia and Coach Brian Notis @ aj.garcia@austintennisacademy.com and brian.notis@austintennisacademy.com if you have any questions. Coach AJ will be organizing the JD and JA level teams and Coach Notis will be organizing the Academy level teams. Deadline to register is Monday, September 13. Schedules will go out after JTT captains meeting on September 15th.
The past several seasons have seen multiple ATA teams represented in the state championship as well as the national championships. ATA has won 4 national JTT championships over the past few years and also dozens of state titles!