Edina tennis: Eyes on the ball

By BRIAN STENSAAS, Star Tribune

Last update: May 28, 2008 - 2:18 PM

High school athletes by nature are resilient, roll-with-the-punches-like creatures. Their coaches, not so much.

"Until [last] week, I never really felt like we got into any kind of rhythm or feel or atmosphere," Edina tennis coach Gary Aasen said. "It was nice to get three straight days of tennis in and have it mean something. It's been such a hit-and-miss season with the weather. It really hasn't felt like a season."

With a 7-0 victory over Hopkins in the Class 2A, Section 6 championship, Edina, ranked No. 2 in the state, has earned the right to make it feel more like a season. It is again back at team state. The Hornets' first match is at 8 a.m. Tuesday against No. 3 Rochester Mayo.

Aasen said his players hadn't sensed the jerkiness of the regular season schedule, shuffling matches here and rescheduling them there. Regardless of when or where, his kids just went out and played. And played well.

The majority of the results this season have been 7-0 or 6-1 in the Hornets' favor. They want to continue those results.

"This is a unique group," Aasen said. "Some of them have been with us for all these state runs. And last year a lot of them thought we had a good shot after winning it the year before and we took third. Having gone to state and gotten third and first, they remember the differential there. They're kind of hungry for that again."

Wayzata not intimidated

Now that Wayzata has advanced to state as a team after a handful of near-misses, the Trojans' reward is a first-round showdown with No. 1-ranked Mounds View. The teams will meet at high noon Tuesday at Baseline.

Intimidation, coach Jeff Prondzinski insists, will not be a factor.

"We've played them twice and lost 4-3 both times," he said. "For us, it's a matter of what we do; can we play our best tennis? If we do, we'll be OK. They have a lot of talent, but we do too."

The Trojans, ranked No. 5, defeated Eden Prairie 5-2 in the Section 2 finals with four of the seven matches stretching to three sets. Wayzata, though, won its first four matches, so the outcome wasn't as dramatic as it could have been. Still, that many close shaves can only help prepare a team for the state tournament.

"You need to get the kids that kid of experience with pressure," Prondzinski said. "Otherwise, you won't play your best in the postseason."

Full-circle at Breck

It's been a decade since Reven Stephens ended his high school career with a pair of gold medals: one for winning the Class A singles championship and one for helping his Breck School team win the overall title a couple of days later. Stephens has now come full-circle, back at the head of the Mustangs' program. He also coached there for a year in 2003.

"I felt almost like it was my duty to come back to Breck," Stephens said. "I wanted to come back and share what I've learned over the years and help these kids out."

His tutelage has panned out. The Mustangs, ranked No. 3, are back at state for the first time since 2001. They open Class 1A state team play at noon Tuesday against No. 9 St. Peter at the Reed-Sweatt Tennis Center in Minneapolis.

"We have an extremely talented group," Stephens said. "All 14 guys on the roster can really play, and we have no seniors. All these guys should be back for next year, too. It's a nice problem to have."