HTA Wraps Up High Performance Camp

2010 HTA High Performance Camp Series
Camp #2
Boys’ & Girls’ 12s & 14s

The Herrmann Tennis Academy hosted its second High Performance Camp of 2010 on April 23-25 at the Glenbrook Racquet Club in Northbrook, Ill. The invitation only camp for Boys’ and Girls’ 12s and 14s featured 30 of the Midwest’s top ranked players. The featured presenter was 2008 U.S. Olympic Coach Rodney Harmon.

Harmon is considered one of America’s true tennis visionaries and for over a decade he served as the USTA Director of High Performance Men’s’ tennis. In his time at the USTA Rodney worked with the most talented players in the nation, including Andy Roddick, James Blake, and Bob & Mike Bryan. He is one of the world’s foremost authorities on the technical aspects of stroke mechanics.

On Friday evening campers were presented topics by Harmon and HTA Director Ernie Katko. Harmon’s presentation focused on the importance of stroke variety in an individual’s game. Katko followed with a discussion of mental tactics and acceptable on court emotions.
Saturday’s action featured three discussions, two by Harmon and the third by Northwestern University Men’s Tennis Coach Arvid Swan. The day started with Harmon’s video analysis on doubles, focusing on the different variety and movement displayed by the Bryan Brothers and the Williams Sisters. Swan led a parental discussion on NCAA regulations and steps that parents may take to help their children develop an opportunity to earn a scholarship. Harmon’s second presentation of the day emphasized the development of defensive skills to neutralize opponent’s strengths.

Sunday featured HTA Owner Ken Herrmann presenting strategies for breaking opponent’s serves and a parent seminar by Van King. Van is the father of Evan King, one of the most highly touted American juniors. Van’s primary topic was the opportunities that tennis can present and finding ways to set healthy goals.

During each day of the event players participated in collegiate style match play. Players were placed on teams representing Northwestern, Ohio State, Michigan, and Tennessee.

The following players participated in the camp: Rex Alley, Craig Campbell, Sean Carrol, Paige Cooley, Rohan Daruwala, Veronica Dodd, Grey Doscotch, Scott Drier, Jalen Evans, Chase Garber, Thomas Harris, Anna Hatfield, Nicholas Hebda, Kenny Herrmann, Sam Hoogland, Lucas Horve, Shyun, Jung, Jaren Katz, Tia King, Edon Kosova, Arina Martin, Oliver Natarajan, Adam Neff, Erika Oku, Niles Porter, Haleigh Porter, Andrew Puscas, Ethan Radke, Ivan Rakic, Jack Randall, Ray Richardson, and Dan Schwartz.

Fawcett Reaches Quarterfinals at Easter Boll

Fawcett Reaches Quarters at 2010 Easter Bowl

Tom Fawcett reached the quarterfinals of the Easter Bowl, the USTA National Spring Championships, held in Rancho Mirage, Cal. April 11-18. Fawcett was the 14th seed at the event.

Fawcett won his first two matches with ease, winning 6-1, 6-0 in the first round and 6-2, 6-0 in the second. In the round of 32 he was forced into a first set tie break by #17 Philip Antohi. Fawcett won the break 7-3 and took a close second set 6-4.

In the following round Fawcett captured his biggest upset of the tournament dropping #7 seed Toshiki Matsuya 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarters. Matsuya is ranked 13th in the USTA National Rankings.

The quarterfinals Fawcett fell to #2 seed Noah Rubin 7-5, 6-2, before dropping a tight 7-5, 7-6(4) match to William Chiu in the consolation quarters. Rubin, of Rockville Center, New York, is ranked 4th in the Nation.

"Tom has been playing high level tennis the last six months; this was a great result in a National Championship. He is taking advantage of the development of his offensive skills," added HTA Director Ernie Katko. "He has been working very hard on moving forward in the court and finishing points either off the bounce or in the air. He always had an excellent court sense, now he has added more offense and more physical conditioning, the additions have paid off."

In the last four months Fawcett has won a Midwest Designated, Midwest Indoor Closed, and Midwest Winter Championships in addition to numerous semifinal appearances.

"Tom is having a great year and he is really growing into his game,” said HTA Owner Ken Herrmann. “Tom has become a major force on the national scene"

Fawcett is currently ranked 2nd in the USTA Midwest Section and 17th in the National Rankings.

Simple Steps to a better serve

Simple Steps To a Better Serve
By HTA Coach Chris Thomas

Players are always looking for ways to tweak their mechanics in order to improve their serves. They try things like increasing racquet-head acceleration, ball toss location, and different wind-ups, but they often overlook the basics. Instead of implementing new techniques, the fastest way to improvement is by upgrading the skills you already possess.

For the serve, it starts with a dependable toss. If you watch any of the great servers like Roddick, Sampras, and Isner each one puts the ball in the right spot every time. No matter if they are hitting a flat first serve or a big kicking second serve the ball toss is always in the same place. This helps with disguise and never letting your opponent know what type of serve you are about to hit. Yet less advanced players are constantly chasing a bad toss, which throws off the rest of their motions. You can get away with some deficiencies in your swing if you have a great toss however that’s not true the other way around.

Being consistent with the toss requires rhythm and practice. During workouts I encourage players to get in their serving stances and extend their arms up, let go of the ball, and catch it. To find the ideal place to put the ball, fully extend your racquet upward and toss the ball just above the top of the frame. Remember, it’s better to toss the ball too high than too low. Do this 10 to 15 times before you even hit a serve in practice.

When you practice hitting real serves, it’s always better to make a high percentage. Don’t worry about pace at first. So many players just try to crank their serves, and most of them land out. Since it’s just practice, it doesn’t bother them. But when they get into matches, their serves aren’t any better.

Set up challenges for yourself such as hitting a certain number of serves in a particular part of the service box. For example, see how many out of 10 you can hit wide or down the middle. Or how many second serves you can make without missing. Only after you get into a good rhythm where you’re making a handful of first serves in a row should you start to increase your power. A gradual progression like this allows you to amp up the pace on your serve while maintaining consistency.

High Performance Mini-Camp Blog

Herrmann Tennis Academy
High Performance Mini-Camp Blog
10s & 12s
January 15 – 17, 2010

Click here for camp Video

With our club’s busy permanent court time and tournament schedule this was our first opportunity to host a Mini-Camp this season. I immediately knew that I wanted to get former USTA Director of Men’s Tennis Rodney Harmon back to HTA. Coach Harmon had been to the Academy last year for a Mini Camp with our Boys’ 16s & 18s, and I was excited about him getting to spend some time with our talented “future stars.”

Friday, January 15th - The camp officially kicked off with all 22 participants joining Rodney for an on court session on “Beating the Pusher – A Lesson in Taking the Ball on the Rise”. After the talk, the juniors were placed on four individual teams for our Davis Cup Competition. The teams were Northwestern (coached by Alums Paul Wei & Jackie Jenkins), Michigan (Van King), Texas (my alma mater), and Tennessee (Rodney’s School).


The weekend team competition was formatted very similar to Zonals with singles, doubles, and mixed doubles matches taking place.

HTA Director Ernie Katko spoke to the participants about their recent wins and losses, and if they or their opponents caused the result. Katko’s presentation, entitled “Winning Matches through Game Analysis,” set the tone for the entire weekend as each player was instructed to make specific notes of his or her opponents’ strengths and weaknesses.

We played until 9pm and told everyone to get a good night rest for our nine hour day on Saturday.

Saturday, January 16th – We began the day with a video match presentation on winning patterns of play. Rodney, the 2008 USA Olympic Coach, broke down footage of the James Blake vs. Roger Federer Beijing Olympics match and discussed the changes Blake made in his game to win. The kids were very impressed and asked various questions on tactics, strategies, and the reactions both players were having during the match.

One of the most popular segments of the camp followed as Rodney broke down the draw and picked his favorites for the Australian Open. Unfortunately his streak of correctly picking the champion only lasted a single year as his 2010 favorite Nikolay Davydenko fell in the quarterfinals. Afterwards we started our hitting session with two hours of live ball drills, followed by lunch and a FAST SERVE Contest won by Max McKinnon (95mph).

Our afternoon session saw the players compete for their respective teams and competition was fierce!

Later that evening at 6:30 we had a pizza party and everyone was ready to get some rest.

Sunday, January 17th – 8am comes fast. We started off our session with Rodney presenting “Exploiting Your Opponent’s Weakness”. Several interesting topics were discussed here from analyzing your opponents grips, to finishing off the mid court ball. We finished our morning session with final Davis Cup matches.

Throughout the weekend each of the players filled their camp notebooks with insights they recorded during and after match play, they also took detailed notes on how our topics related to their individual games. We hope the campers all share this vital information with their personal coaches.

All players were given a group photo to remember their experience on court with Rodney.

Special Thanks goes to former HTA Advisor Paul Torricelli for his talk on “Does Your Child Aspire to Play Collegiate Tennis”, and current HTA coach Van King’s talk on “Lessons in Parenting a Junior Player”.

It was a terrific weekend with lots of great tennis and information discussed. I enjoyed meeting the players that came in from across the Midwest. We’ve got some very talented kids in the Midwest coming through the ranks!!

Fawcett Wins Midwest Winter Championships

Tom Fawcett took the Boys’ 14s title to lead a strong contingent of HTA competitors at the Midwest Winter Championships held at the Dayton Center Courts & Tennis Academy in Dayton, Ohio January 15-17. The tournament is a National Level 3, Midwest Level 2 event.

Fawcett, seeded third, rocked Brandon Yeoh of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. 6-0, 6-1 in the first round. In the second round Fawcett dropped his only set of the tournament, falling behind 6-7(5) to Indiana’s Jeffrey Chen. Fawcett turned it around and took each of the next two sets 6-1, 6-1. Tom handled fifth seeded Michael Dube 6-2, 6-2 in the quarterfinals.

The semifinals brought a tighter match as Fawcett knocked out Harrison O’Keefe 7-5, 6-3 to advance to the finals against Aron Hiltzik. O’Keefe, from Salem, Va. knocked out #1 seed Max Fleigner 6-1, 6-2 in the quarters. Fawcett took out Hiltzik in straight sets 6-3, 6-0 to take the title.

In the Boys’ 18s draw Ben Hoogland won his first two matches 6-1, 6-0 and 6-2, 6-1 to cruise into the quarterfinals, where he faced #3 seed Jackson Withrow. Withrow topped Hoogland 6-3, 6-2.

Also competing in the event were Sam Hoogland (2-2), Vinnie Nagaraj (1-2), Michael Sellitto (0-2), and Brandon Wozniczka (0-2)

Four Compete at Boy's 10s Closed

Four juniors from the Herrmann Tennis Academy traveled to Kenosha, Wisc. to compete at the USTA Midwest Section Boys’ 10s’ Midwest Closed Junior Indoor Championships January 23-25.

Kenny Herrmann had the top showing of HTA competitors, receiving a bye as the seventh seed and winning his first two matches to advance to the quarterfinals. Kenny then fell 6-1, 6-0 to Sam Komis in the quarters. Herrmann rebounded to take out fifteenth seed Scott Bout 6-3, 6-1 to advance to the feed-in semifinals and end the tournament on a winning note.

Jeremy Barretta posted a 4-2 record in the tournament, highlighted by a 4-6, 7-5, 10-7 win over eighth seeded Oliver Weaver.

Quentin Benedetto lost to sixteenth seed Casey Johnson in the first round and was defeated 3-6, 7-6(7), 11-9 by A.J Dugan in his second match.

Michael McFadden also fell in a close consolation match, losing 7-5, 2-6, 10-5 to Benjamin Bout.

“Each of our players showed some positive results in this event,” said HTA Owner Ken Herrmann. “Each of these boys’ has a bright future in the game and we are excited to see them develop together.”

Wisconsin's Robert Krill, an attendee at the most recent HTA High Performance Mini-Camp advanced to the finals.

The Fitness Difference by Chris Thomas

The Importance of Fitness
HTA Coach Chris Thomas

If you have ever played several, grueling three set matches in one day you know how important it is to be in great physical shape. Having the ability to last on the court for long periods of time and to recover quickly will give you a major advantage during matches.

Fitness training should go beyond aerobic conditioning and include speed, quickness, agility, strength and endurance training. If you want to be at the top of your game you have to devote time on a consistent basis to increase your overall fitness. For all juniors that are gearing up for the high school season, now is the time to put your fitness regime into high gear. Matches (and positions on varsity teams) are rarely won by the player that hits their strokes the hardest but are almost always won by the player that consistently moves around the court with excellent footwork. Can you imagine the difference it would make in your game if during a third set tiebreak you felt like it was the first set? Being able to get to every ball and hitting it in your strike zone will make a huge difference in a long close match. Increasing your overall fitness level is something every player can do that will definitely help every time they step one the court.

There are many activities you can do to increase your fitness level. I am a big believer in making sure that you raise your heart rate for at least 20 minutes as a starting point for every workout. Many activities that can be utilized include jogging (outside or on a treadmill), riding a stationary or recumbent bike, using an elliptical or stair stepper or one of my favorites – inline skating. Additionally, I like to include some type of speed and agility training in my daily workouts. A few good exercises are sprints, speed ladder, and jumping rope. The last element I like to include is strength training. The key is to concentrate on your form, use lower weights and more repetitions and be sure to include leg work and core work.

Fitness is a major factor in becoming the best tennis player you can. You need to discipline yourself and make fitness training part of your daily practice routine. Work hard and give it 100% and you will see the results on the court.

Thomas Joins HTA Staff

The Herrmann Tennis Academy has announced the addition of Chris Thomas to the staff. Chris joins us after completing his masters degree in recreation, parks, and tourism administration from Western Illinois University.

While attending WIU Chris served as the Graduate Assistant for the men's and women's tennis teams. He helped lead both teams to top three finishes at the 2009 Summit League Championships.

Prior to attending WIU Thomas played at Eastern Illinois University and was a four year letter-winner. At Eastern Chris played as high in the lineup as #1 doubles and #2 singles.

A native of Wilmette, Chris was twice an all-state honoree at New Trier High School. In 2004 he was the captain of a Trevian team that finished second at the IHSA State Tournament. That year he also captured a sectional championship in doubles.

"Chris has a lot of enthusiam and is a terrific young man," noted HTA's Ken Herrmann. "He will add additional excitement to the academy."

Yu and Tapak to play at Carnegie Mellon

Recent Herrmann Tennis Academy players Johoo Yu and Alex Tapak have announced that they will play collegiate tennis at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh for head coach Andrew Girard.

Yu, a 2009 graduate of Glenbrook North High School, is ranked 46th in the USTA Midwest Section. This past spring Jooho finished in the top 16 at the IHSA State Championships and he qualified for the state tournament three times in his high school career.

“I knew Jooho was an excellent match for our tennis program right away. His academic success and interests combined with his continually improving tennis game and results are exactly what we are looking for here at Carnegie Mellon,” said coach Girard. “He has had some great results over the last season against some of the Midwest’s best players. He’ll come in well-prepared to battle against the top players in Division III.”

The Tartans made it to the NCAA Division III Regional Finals in 2009, where they came within one match of reaching the NCAA Championships before falling to Kenyon 5-4. They finished the season ranked #14 in the ITA Rankings. Over the last four years CMU has combined to go 57-23.

Tapak was a three-time state qualifier for Hinsdale Central High School, and she helped lead the Red Devils to three consecutive IHSA State Championships. Her sophomore and junior years Tapak joined forces with Emily Lombardi and the pair finished top 12 in 2006 and fourth in 2007. As a senior Alex and Kate Klein were fifth at state.

“We’re really excited to have Alex at Carnegie Mellon this coming year. She should be able to step in and be a major contributor for us right away in both singles and doubles. I expect we’ll be in the national title hunt over the next few years and think that Alex will be a key player in that effort. As a tennis player, student, and person she is a great fit for our program,” noted Girard.

CMU had one of its best seasons in school history in 2009 as it advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament and finished the season 21-3. Additionally, the team captured the very first ITA Division III Indoor Championships. Each of the team’s three loses were to opponents ranked in the top five of the ITA rankings. Over the last five years Carnegie Mellon is 85-32.

“Alex and Jooho both have very solid games and we expect them to contribute greatly to their team’s success over the next four years,” stated Ken Herrmann. “They both are continuing their education at one of the top academic institutions in the nation.”

U.S. News and World Report ranks Carnegie Mellon as one of the top twenty-five National Universities in the United States.

Moore Second at IHSA Championships

Herrmann Tennis Academy Standout and Glenbrook South Senior Michael Moore finished his tremendous high school career with a second place finish at the Illinois High School Association Boys Tennis Championships. Moore, a Notre Dame recruit, was the top seed in the 128 player draw and one of twelve HTA players at the tournament
Moore dominated his first three matches, beating Lake Forests’ Peter Wolniak 6-0, 6-1 in the first round, Collin McWethy of Oswego 6-1, 6-0 in the second, and Ben Quazzo of Latin 6-0, 6-2 in the third. Day two was more challenging, but Michael took two more matches in straight sets, including a 6-1, 6-3 over academy classmate Andrew Scholnick.

In the semifinals Moore took out defending state champion Denis Bogatov 6-1, 6-7(3), 7-6(3) in a three and a half hour battle. Less than two hours later Moore was back on court and facing #2 seed Blake Bazarnik. Bazarnik took the first set 6-4, before Michael bounced back with a 6-3 win in the second. The two players went stroke for stroke in the third set and were dead even at 6 all. Ultimately Bazarnik took the tiebreak 7-4 for the match and the title.

Moore placed in the top eight at state each of the last three seasons.

“Michael has been such a huge part of our academy for the past six years and I am extremely happy that he could be a state finalist,” said HTA Owner Ken Herrmann. “Although he didn’t finish the season with the results he wanted, he had an incredible high school career.”

Helping Glenbrook South take fourth were two other HTA stars, Junior Ben Hoogland and Freshman Michael Sellitto. Hoogland received a top eight seed for the tournament and won each of his first three matches in straight sets to advance to day two. In his fourth match Moore was upset by Lake Zurich’s Michael Redlicki 6-2, 6-4. Redlicki became one of the biggest stories of the IHSA event as he finished fourth as a freshman.

Hoogland got back on track in the consolation draw and won three more matches to advance to the Consolation semifinals where he fell to HTA sophomore Robert Stineman 6-1, 6-3 to tie for seventh place in the tournament.

Sellitto finished an outstanding freshman season with a third place finish in the doubles draw. Sellitto teamed up with Tommy McNichols to win their first five matches of the tournament. On day one the duo won each match in three sets, but the competition picked up on day two and the Titans pulled out two tight three set matches. In the semifinals they lost to eventual second-place finishers Ross Putterman and David Packowitz 6-0, 6-4. In the third place match Sellitto and McNichols bounced back from a first set loss to beat New Trier’s John Beam and Branter Jones 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(1). This was the fourth New Trier-GBS meeting of the year and Glenbrook South won on three occasions.

Stineman (sixth place), Scholnick (7th place) and Jones were a part of the HTA contingent that lead New Trier to third in state.

“The level of play at this event was incredible and it was especially rewarding to see the impact that many of our players had on the teams that were at the top of the standings at the end of the tournament,” said Herrmann.

Also representing the academy and their high schools were: Bill Angel (Fr., Glenbrook North), Marcus Ampon (Sr., Highland Park), Etham Frenkel (Sr., Stevenson), Kevin Prescott (Sr., Chicago Latin), Jooho Yu (Sr. Glenbrook North), and Vova Zverkovskiy (Jr., Niles West).

To qualify for the state tournament players must finish in the top four at their respective sectional. Moore, Scholnick, Jones, and Sellitto were each sectional champions and six of the top sixteen seeds at state were academy members.