With spring just around the corner, sports such as baseball, lacrosse, and softball are beginning to condition in preparation for the upcoming season. Boys tennis is also going to start soon, but they have been conditioning since mid-November.

“Morning conditioning helps keep our players in shape, and by doing the workouts together, it provides a chance to develop unity and a team bond,” said Michael Teets, coach of both the boys and girls Varsity tennis teams.

“You can’t fake toughness or being in shape, so when you get out of bed early, work out, and “tough it out” as a group, it helps forge a bond that you don’t get otherwise,” continued Teets.

Tennis conditioning is from 6:00 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. During that  short half hour athletes are able to train vigorously and extensively.

“At conditioning we start with warm ups, and then do minute long stations for about 15 minutes. Then we do Aviator pushups and sprints, and stretch at the end ,” said Nakul Narendran, 11.

Along with morning conditioning, athletes are encouraged but not required to participate in Gold Club. This system, introduced by Teets, is used to track the amount of tennis athletes play in the offseason.

Different activities, such as private lessons, group clinics, and tournaments, are converted into different point values. 400 points are required to achieve Gold Club.

“Tennis is about playing a lot. Getting out there and practicing as much as you can is the best way to improve your game,” said Aravind Murali, 10.

With all of the conditioning and tennis playing during the offseason, the SHS tennis program is expecting big things in the upcoming season.

“My expectation is that all three of our teams go into every match with the intention of outworking the opponent, and then earning a victory.  If we do that with class, we have achieved our goals.  If we fall short, it cannot be in how we handled ourselves, or in how hard we worked and competed.  Those are the expectations,” said Teets.