Any state qualifier whose top four players were seniors should expect a talent dropoff. Sedona Red Rock High School head boys tennis coach Duane Edwards would just like more time to get ready.

“It’s tough to prepare a kid to play at varsity level in one month,” he said. “Looking at these kids, you wouldn’t recognize them three weeks ago. There are a lot of beginners who are still learning and very raw.”

Nine of the 15 Scorpions on the boys tennis roster, including sophomore No. 4 Peter Hoyle, have no prior experience playing the sport. After only a month of organized practice, the first game for SRRHS was Tuesday,
March 4.

With the top of the ladder being juniors Max Hauserman, the only consistent returning player from a team with both a singles and doubles third-round finisher in last year’s Division III tournament, and one-year Serbian transfer Andrija Anziel, there will inevitably be some growing pains.

“We want to leave with a sense of improvement,” Edwards said of his goals for this season. “I’d love to make state.”

For the full story, please see the Wednesday, March 5, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.