Tennis had its first home meet yesterday afternoon, with the most notable player in singles being senior Evan Franke.

“(Franke has) worked a lot during the summer, and he’s improved as a single player,” tennis coach Dennis Burns said. “He’s more patient and he’s going to go play tennis at the next level in college. He’s signed a commitment to Hastings College in Nebraska to play, and so he’s a good player.”

Franke has gotten much in service and return, but can still improve on the court.

“That’s what he wanted to work on and rally,” Burns said. “He still needs improvement in court situations and when to wait for the opportune moment to win – to what we call ‘use his weapon.’”

Senior Scott Simmons and junior Isaac Bowman played in doubles, and are the pair that Burns think are the best.

“They decided to play doubles and to continue to play doubles this year,” Burns said. “They’ve been working together and they’re consistent with each other, getting better and better each match.”

The duo still needs to work on “finishing” the game at times, though.

“It’s just finishing the doubles point when they have the opportunity to win,” Burns said. “They need to finish it at that moment and we’re giving people some second chances and you cannot do that in doubles.”

Burns is also excited about all the new freshmen on the team.

“(We’ve also) got a great group of freshmen coming in that… are going to be a pretty dynamic team by the time they’re seniors, I believe.”