Matacio starts new challenge with St. Charles Jr. Tennis

Tim Matacio has dedicated most of his life developing young tennis players, 39 of his 54 years, to be exact, including the nine spent building St. Charles North's boys and girls programs from scratch into two of the area's very best.

But in spite of the many years and varied experiences that Matacio has had in tennis, his newest venture as a teacher of the game is quite a bit different.

Since leaving St. Charles North last year, Matacio has helped launch the St. Charles Junior Tennis Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching tennis to players as young as 3- and 4- years old by employing the QuickStart method.

"It's a change of pace from coaching older players," Matacio said. "I got started in the program in the fall of 2008. I've been teaching a long time, and this approach made sense to me right away.

The SCJTA's facility is located St. Charles' far west side near Randall Road as part of an office and sports complex. The courts opened just a few weeks ago, and you can still smell the fresh paint.

"We're open right now, but there's still a lot work to do," Matacio said. "We're planning on having a big grand opening in February."

The facility, like the organization which recently launched its Web site (qs10sclub.com), remains a work in progress. But things are moving quickly, and Matacio is excited with the fast progress that he's seen.

"This is the way that the USTA now wants the game to be taught, and I think we're going to develop some very good players in this area," Matacio said. "It's only going to work, however, if the community gets behind it. As the coach at North, I was focused entirely on that school, but this program is designed for the whole Fox Valley."

The QuickStart approach, which Matacio says has gained greatly in popularity in recent years, begins by shrinking the court and lowering the net to match the abilities of the players. The youngest kids learn on a smaller, 18-by-36 foot court, and the nets are six inches lower than regulation size.

"When a kid learns to ride a bike they usually do it with a smaller bike and training wheels," Matacio said. "With other sports, children learn to play on smaller fields and with equipment that's better suited to their age and skill level. But with tennis, we used to start them on regulation courts, and that doesn't make a lot of sense."

Players also use softer and bouncier tennis balls. But Matacio stresses that the equipment and the courts are not the only thing that makes the QuickStart approach different.

"In the past, we taught players how to play, with the QuickStart method they play so they can learn," Matacio said. "They start playing right away, and as they progress they will learn the different techniques."

Soon after the facility opened in December, Matacio added a familiar face to his coaching staff. Megan Gow, a standout during her four years with the North Stars, spent her winter break teaching the sport to kids who might one day end up making it to the state tournament, as she did.

"I've been teaching this age group for a while and I really like it," Gow said. "I like seeing them progress and getting more confident."

While trying to coach a group of very young kids can prove challenging, it's obvious from watching them that Matacio and Gow also get a great deal of enjoyment out of it.

"The biggest challenge is that sometimes it's fun to just play with them, and I want to be sure to work in the skills as well," Gow said.

Gow, who is currently playing for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. is very optimistic about the prospects for the association and for bringing the QuickStart approach to the area, and she's not alone. Laura Spicer of St. Charles has seen how much her 3-year-old son Jonathan has enjoyed being involved in the program.

"He's loving it." Spicer said. "Jonathan asks every day if this is a tennis day. There's just a lot of very good energy here."

It takes only a few minutes of watching Matacio work with the kids to see how much they're enjoying the game, not just because play is interwoven with instruction, but also because so many of the frustrations are removed when the court is made smaller.

"The idea is to get them rallying as soon as possible and instill the idea of constant motion," Matacio said. "Kids learn naturally, and the main thing is that they have fun while they're learning."

The courts are lined for various dimensions, and the nets can be shifted to accommodate older kids as well. Though children have been the first ones through the door, Matacio foresees the facility being used by all ages.

"We're going to have sessions for seniors, I think this is an awesome opportunity for them to get involved. We're also going to have some beginner leagues for moms, and eventually host tournaments here."

Before taking on the task of growing the St. Charles North program, Matacio coached at Hinsdale Central, one of the state's elite tennis programs. He believes that he's learned through his work at those two schools, along with the rest of his coaching experience what it takes to turn this area into a mecca for youth tennis.

"We're hoping to build on the interest in tennis that already exists in this area, and get a lot more people playing tennis," Matacio said. "It's about getting more kids playing tennis at an early age. By getting them started at four or five, and helping them build that confidence in their ability to play, I think we'll be able to keep more of them interested in the game."