The Fountain Hills High School tennis team might have a small roster for the 2019 season but, with talented, dedicated players and a new coach, the small band of Falcons hopes to lay the seeds for a championship program.

Currently both the boys and the girls teams have only four players, which is just two shy of the six needed for a full team.

However, of the eight players on the team, six are returning veterans who are more than willing to put in the work required.

“The full team has been back on the court for four weeks now,” said head coach Ted Trippett. “But we’ve also had some dedicated players putting in court time regularly since the summer.”

Trippett, a new coach for the Falcons, has a decade of experience with sport himself.

“I have been playing tennis for just over 10 years now and began coaching and sharing the sport I love in 2016,” Trippett said. “This is my first year leading a high school team and I have had a great experience so far. I am also the instructor for CopperWynd Resort and Club, and one of the instructors for the Town of Fountain Hills.”

Trippett has been working with the six Falcons that have been going since the summer, focusing on some of the basics.

“In the offseason we had been working on technique, consistency and playing smart,” Trippett said. “But now that we are in season we will shift to the mental game and maintaining our level.”

Trippett said he is excited to see how players like Kyle Richardson, Casey Timms, Andrei Urda, and Rory Wilson’s hard work in the offseason translates to the regular season.

Along with that, Trippett said he is eager to see how the team grows as a cohesive unit.

“I’m looking forward to the competition and the comradery,” Trippett said. “Seeing the players out there battling, supporting each other, strengthening relationships, growing and learning about themselves is rewarding, much more so than seeing someone hitting a perfect backhand – Although that is great, too!”

Along with personal growth, Trippett and the team want to start off a new chapter for Falcon tennis on the right foot.

“We plan todefine what it means to play on the Falcons’ tennis team and to lay the groundwork to develop a program of consistent excellence,” Trippett said. “The head coach’s seat changed a few times these past seasons, which obviously influenced continuity and development.”

The tennis squad will have its second match of the season tomorrow, Thursday, March 7, against AZ College Prep.