Bearcat tennis prepping for upcoming (real) season

A Dexter High School girl's tennis player hits a shot during an open-court training session at the school on Tuesday.

Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

DEXTER – There are several goals to strive to attain in the off-season for high school athletes, but for seventh-year Dexter High School girls tennis coach Kristi Boles, this summer has been about discovery.

“It’s hard to tell exactly what you are going to have (during the season) in the summer,” Boles said after watching her athletes train on Tuesday at the school.

The Bearcat girls tennis program has been working out twice each week this summer and will conclude its off-season today, before reconvening on Aug. 12 for its first official practice.

“For about (90 minutes),” Boles explained of her team’s schedule this summer, “we come out here and get some conditioning in, we get some hits in, some swings, and some serves.”

The Bearcats graduated two seniors from last fall but have a large group of upperclassmen to fill Boles’ lineup this fall. Most importantly, the Bearcat athletes have had a great attitude throughout their off-season work.

“They’re good,” Boles said of the enthusiasm within the program. “They like to be around each other. A lot of them hang out outside of tennis.”

Another important component for Boles’ athletes is gaining experience on the court, before having to face competition, which begins in September.

“I’ll have freshmen come out,” Boles said of the summer growth, “and the first time, they can’t hit the ball over the net. By the end of July, you’ll start to see them feeling a little more confident and knowing what to do.”

The Bearcat regular season will open on Sept. 3 against Charleston at Dexter at 4 p.m.

Dexter has won five matches in each of the past two seasons. Boles’ program will compete in 14 matches, in addition to three invitationals.