Glenbard W. like a machine in win over Naperville N.
Last week Glenbard West's Audrey Young was having trouble with volleys, so she went out on Sunday and hit against a tennis ball machine for two hours.
In the Hilltoppers' 6-1 win over host Naperville Central, the Glenbard West junior could call on her volleying game a little more, and she defeated Taylor Spence 6-0, 6-4 at first singles.
The extra drill was just another example of Young's new commitment to the game, which has seen her take her place at No. 1 singles on a veteran Glenbard West team, and she plans to hold on to that position.
"Audrey is the most improved player on our team," said Rob White, coach of the Hilltoppers. "She gets a little better every day. She's got a good serve, she's got the pace and power and quickness on the court, and she's getting better at the net. The only thing she needs is experience, and that's coming."
Young, who had been a badminton player, took the summer off and devoted it to tennis. She worked every day for four hours attended several tennis camps.
"Everything about my game has improved," Young said. "I'm much more consistent. And I'm much more aware of finding my opponent's weaknesses and then hitting to those weaknesses."
"Audrey wanted to get better," White said about Young who played first-singles on the sophomore team last year. "That kind of decision has to come from within. She's just approached the sport a lot differently the past few months. Her attitude has been great. Tennis matters to her now and she's earned the respect of her teammates as our first-singles player."
In Wednesday's first set, which she dominated, Young was moving her opponent around with a variety of shots.
"I was working the ball cross-court, making sure the shots went in and changing up the speed instead of just hitting hard over and over," Young said.
In the second set Spence figured things out and started using her forehand to put shots to the backhand corner, a tactic that caught Young off guard.
"In the second set my serve was better and I started rallying a lot more," Spence said. "I was a lot more patient."
Glenbard West's superior depth, which includes an entire doubles lineup that returns from last year, was the difference Wednesday as the Hilltoppers (9-2) won five matches outright and a sixth by default when the Redhawks' third-singles Sonia Nilakhe had to quit due to a hip injury.
Michelle Fern produced the Redhawks (6-6) only victory a 6-2, 6-4 decision at third singles.
"We're still trying to find the right doubles combinations," said Naperville Central coach Don Bonet. "We've been hit with some injuries, but we just have to get regrouped and be ready for the DuPage Valley Conference schedule, which starts next week."