West Nott Takes Position at USC; Junior News
Between Marcia Frost of collegandjuniortennis.com and West Nott of Underground Tennis, I had plenty of company in Athens. West was interviewing for coaching jobs while there, and it didn't take him long to land one; he's accepted an offer to serve as an assistant coach for the University of Southern California women's team. The above link to his site explains that his website may not survive the job change. I'm hoping he finds a way to keep it viable; in less than a year, it has become an important part of the amateur and fledgling pro tennis scene.
I was happy to see quite a few juniors in Athens, too. With several National Opens in the Atlanta area, it wasn't difficult to combine playing a junior tournament with watching tennis at the next level.
I spotted Atlanta resident Donald Young the first day of team competition, and Brad and Jordan Cox, from nearby Duluth, came out the first evening to watch Jesse Levine's Florida team take on Georgia (Jesse and Brad were suitemates at Bollettieri's.) Jessica Alexander was there to cheer on her sister Megan, who plays No. 2 for Florida, and Jarmere Jenkins was there to support his brother Jarmaine's girlfriend Natalie Frazier, Georgia's No. 1 player. Sacha Jones, on her way to the French Open Juniors and Wimbledon, was there for her brother GD of Illinois. Dennis Nevolo, Ryan Lipman and Jackie Wu had a look around the Dan Magill Tennis Complex, and I'm sure there were others there that I didn't see. The whole NCAA atmosphere has to be an inspiration for juniors, and observing the level of play is probably pretty sobering for them too. It's certainly a great place to set goals.
1 comments:
Collette,
It was also a fantastic advertisement for the college game. The post-match interviews, in particular, were highly revealing and, for anyone who has spent time around players of a similar age on the pro tour, the level of maturity displayed by their college counterparts was a stark reminder of what you can give up when entering the 'work force' at a very young age.
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