I remember a couple years ago playing tennis at my old high school with my cousin, Russell, who was then a Freshman. I somehow managed to help talk him into going out for the team, and now he's playing no. 1 doubles and making the news:
Shelbyville’s tennis program needs a little attitude. Not the racket-throwing kind of attitude. It just needs a leader — or two.
The Golden Bears may have finally found that in the No. 1 doubles combination of David Lennen and Russell Bennett.
The recently combined Lennen and Bennett lost their first match Saturday in the Shelbyville Invitational, then bounced back with two straight wins before losing in the championship match to one of the better doubles teams in the state.
Congrats, Russell! The best I ever played was 2-dubs. (Though, that had more to do with the then-coach's asinine policy of using a singles ladder to determine the doubles rankings. Scott Carwein and I should have at least been given a shot at 1-dubs. We were 12-5 our Senior year.) Anyway, well done, Russell, earning that 1-dubs spot! The article continues:
It was just the kind of performance Shelbyville tennis coach Stan Wilkison has been looking for this season.
“I think they are capable of (leading),” Wilkison said. “We are missing that. We can talk about it all day long, but at the end of the day, if they don’t come out with wins, it’s all meaningless.”
Well, I don't know about the "if they don't come out with wins, it's all meaningless" talk, but right on for Russell being a team leader. Attitude, indeed. Just take a look at that 'fro!
