For Love
of the Game
■ AFTER-SCHOOL TENNIS
PROGRAM INTRODUCES KIDS
TO THE SPORT, ADVANCES
THEIR SKILL LEVEL
W
ith school back in
session, plenty of
kids are hitting the
books. And when
they need a break from studying,
they're hitting forehands, backhands
and overhead smashes during Los
Cab's After-School Tennis Academy.
The program is offered every
Monday, Wednesday and Friday
from 4-6 p.m. at the club, and tennis
pros Chris Hastings, Mark Hirtler
and Ian Barr work with kids ages 6-
18 on everything from the basic
strokes to more advanced concepts
such as match strategy. Fridays are
usually the busiest days, with as
many as 30 kids participating.
"Our goals are to help them have
fun and love the game, and if we can
do that, then we want to introduce
them to competitive tennis and get
them ready for high school play,"
Hastings said. "Tennis is one of
those sports, like golf, that you can
play for a lifetime. We believe if we
can introduce kids to the game, they
can enjoy it for many, many years."
Players are divided into three
groups based on their skill level.
Drill stations are limited to 4-8 play-
ers per court, and other courts are
available for challenge matches and
ladder competitions daily.
"Playing matches is critical to a
player's success," Hastings said.
Parents can register their kids for
as little as $30 for a single session,
and monthly rates and multiple-
child rates are offered at discounts.
....................................................................
VISIT loscab.com/afterschool-academies.
2
❘
LOS CAB LIFE
❘
SEPTEMBER 2019
●
ON THE COURTS
YOUTH
MOVEMENT
T
he top tennis players from Southern
California ages 10-18 will compete in
the 34th annual Los Cab Junior Open on
September 7-8 and 14-16.
"We're expecting about 800 kids to
enter," said event organizer Hank Lloyd. "It
has always been a great event that draws
the top girls and boys from Southern Cali-
fornia. It's a highlight of the year, for sure."
Last year, top-seeded Maxwell McKen-
non of Newport Beach won the top boys'
singles bracket, while the boys' 18 doubles
crown was captured by unseeded Fer-
nando Fonseca and Takeyaso Sekiguchi,
both of Ojai. The girls' 18 singles title went
to Midori Castillo of Bonita, with Arianna
Stavropoulos of Sierra Madre and Cindy
Ung of Eastvale winning the girls' 18 dou-
bles bracket. Los Cab's Alan Ton was a fi-
nalist in the boys' 14 singles division last
year – won by Andrew Nguyen – and is set
to return with an eye on capturing the title.
COMPETITION KICKS OFF IN JUNIOR OPEN
WATCH! Click on the image to watch Los Cab's After-School Tennis Academy video.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Last year's finalist Alan Ton (left)
and champion Andrew Nguyen.
