By Tom Harris...



Courtney Thompson’s first tennis instructor was her mother. Years earlier, one of Rhonda Thompson’s teachers had been Arnie Bradshaw.

Last summer, as Courtney looked forward to her senior season with the Geneva tennis team, she, too, was able to work with Bradshaw, the founder of the Geneva tennis program.

“Mr. Bradshaw did some teaching over the summer, and Courtney was able to learn from him,” Rhonda Thompson said. “He taught me, and he taught Courtney a lot this summer. It was just a great experience for her.”

There were other great experiences for Thompson in the months leading up to the 2009 girls high school tennis season. Playing in USTA tournaments during the spring and summer, Thompson posted a 9-4 record and won the girls 18-and-under singles championship at the Towpath Boys and Girls Tournament.

Then, Thompson opened the scholastic season with a 6-4, 6-3 win over South’s powerful No. 1, Carly Holloway.

“Our first match was at South, and I was able to beat Carly,” Thompson said. “That was a great way to start the season.”

And a great season followed the great start. Helped by Thompson’s 18-3 record (15-2 in singles play, 3-1 in doubles), Geneva was a perfect 12-0 in the Premier Athletic Conference and 18-3 overall.

“You need a solid No. 1,” Geneva coach Scott Torok said. “Obviously, it’s a relief when you have a girl at first singles who’s going to go out there and get you a point.”

For her role in leading the Eagles to a fourth straight conference championship, this one in the PAC, following three Northeastern Conference titles, Thompson has been named the Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year. This is the third consecutive year that the daughter of Vern and Rhonda Thompson has received the honor.

“If we hadn’t had Courtney at No. 1 this year, it would have been much more difficult," Torok said.

When Thompson played singles this year, she got a point for the Eagles in 15 of 17 matches. Gilmour’s Amy Smedira beat Thompson, 6-4, 6-3, on Aug. 18, and Holloway got a measure of revenge, defeating Thompson, 7-5, 6-3, when the Rebels visited Geneva on Sept. 9.

“Holloway was definitely a challenge,” Thompson said. “South is tough, and Chardon is pretty good, too. We played a lot of the PAC teams before, but it was nice to play them twice this year. Overall, I think the PAC and old NEC are pretty equal. But I missed some of rivalries with the NEC teams.”

Thompson discovered tennis when she accompanied her mother to the courts on Eastwood Street, near Memorial Field.

“My mom was going to the courts, and I wanted to go, too,” Thompson said. “We’d hit some balls. After a few years, I was able to keep the ball on the court. Then I started working on different things.”

In her four years at Geneva, Thompson amassed a record of 78-18. Only two other players in Geneva girls tennis history have more career victories: Courtney Brenkus (86-13) and Colleen Hall (82-15).

“It really took a lot of work,” Thompson said. “Every year I had to work a little harder. It is great to have been able to accomplish it.”

The one thing Thompson would have liked to have done but didn’t was earn a spot in the state tournament. She advanced to the Division I district tournament as a sophomore and a junior. This year, competing in the much more competitive Division II tournament, she and doubles partner Jessica Coggins were unable to make it out of the Brush sectional tournament.

“I really wanted to go to the state tournament, but it didn’t happen,” she said.

Mixing hard work with innate ability and a desire to win, Thompson has found a winning formula. Thompson, according to Torok, “just hates to lose.”

“A lot of the tennis came naturally to her,” Torok said. “At least, it always looked like it came easily to her. But at some point, she decided that she wanted to be the best. No matter what the situation is, Courtney is always battling and trying to find a way to win.”

“I love tennis,” Thompson said. “I have a passion for it. It’s what I’ve always done. I love it.”

Geneva is the perfect place for a proud and determined player. No matter where the Eagles go, their reputation precedes them. And that’s a good thing — something to build on and something to enjoy.

“One of the best things is just playing for Geneva,” Thompson said. “It’s awesome being part of a winning program. I heard someone telling the Perry girls that they’d have to play extra hard against us. It’s nice to know other teams can’t take you lightly. It’s good to be part of something that is so respected.”

In dissecting her game, Thompson sees her forehand as her strength, but she has a more difficult time with her backhand and serve.

“My forehand never seems to be a problem,” she said. “But I always have to keep working on my backhand and serve. They’re not super bad. If I can keep at it, by the end of the season they’re pretty solid.”

It is Thompson’s intention to play collegiate tennis next year. She’s not sure where, but she is looking.

“Right now, I’m leaning toward Mercyhurst,” she said. “I’ve visited there and had a chance to meet some of the girls and practice with the team. I really like it.

“I’m also considering Mount Union, Baldwin-Wallace and Cleveland State.”

Tennis is Thompson’s favorite sport, but it isn’t her only sport. Basketball season is on the horizon, and Thompson will again be an important contributor on coach Nancy Barbo’s team. That won’t give Thompson a lot of time to ponder her final high school tennis season, but she is aware that a big chapter in her life closed this fall.

“Because it was my last year, it was kind of sad,” she said. “To have been part of the team for four years, and now it’s all ending. It was good to be part of the team, and I’m so proud of what we accomplished. I’m going to miss it.”



Harris is a freelance writer from Ashtabula Township. Reach him at tharris508@yahoo.com.