This past Saturday, Union High School, Graaff-Reinet’s junior ๐ง๐ข๐ฃ ๐ฒ ๐ง๐๐ก๐ก๐๐ฆ girls traveled to Gqeberha, where they faced off against their counterparts from Summerwood Primary School.
๐๐ณ๐ข๐ท๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐จ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ธ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฅ๐บ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด, the girls competed in two singles matches and one doubles match.
๐ช๐๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ก๐ to the girls who emerged victorious, finishing the encounter with a total of 81 games, outpacing Summerwood’s 73.
On Monday afternoon 24 February, our top 12 senior tennis players took part in a fun and speedy fixture against Hoรซrskool Middelburg. Only singles matches were played and each player had exactly 30 minutes to play as many games as possible.
Our top 6 girls once again showed off their skills and tenacity, beating Middelburg by 40 matches! Unfortunately, our top 6 boys were unable to do the same, and they lost by 20 matches.ย ย
Overall the margin from the girlsโ victory was large enough to make Union the overall winner with a total of 61 matches against Middelburgโs 41 matches. Well done to our players who played on very warm courts but still managed to show good sportsmanship and good manners to our visitors!ย
This past Friday morning, 7 February, Union High School’s Top 4 senior boys’ and girls’ tennis players set off for the Van Niekerk and Koen Tennis Tournament in Burgersdorp.
Over the two days that followed, the team faced off against competitors from Middelburg, Burgersdorp, De Aar, Cradock and Hoรซrskool Jim Fouchรฉ.
The next morning, the players were once again relieved to find that the courts were dry enough for matches to start at 07:30. The boys had two remaining doubles matches against the second teams of Burgersdorp and Jim Fouchรฉ. They triumphed over Burgersdorp, winning 12-2, but faced defeat against Jim Fouchรฉ, losing 5-9.
This achievement earned them a spot in the semi-finals, where they faced Jim Fouchรฉ again. Unfortunately, Union lost this round by a narrow margin of eight games. However, due to their strong performance in the previous day’s matches, they advanced to the final round against De Aar.
The players had to start their matches immediately without a warm-up, which, combined with high stress levels, led to poor decision-making and unnecessary mistakes. De Aar ultimately claimed the trophy, winning four out of the six matches played in the final round.
Early on Sunday morning 19 January, 16 of our senior tennis players departed for Grahamstown where they participated in the Boys Settlers Cup and Girls Quadrangular tennis tournament hosted by Kingswood College. Our boys and girls played 3 matches against the likes of Graeme College, St Andrews, Victoria Girls High, DSG and of course Kingswood College. Unionโs team played their hearts out, even though the early morning departure of 4am resulted in some very tired players. The results were as follows:
Union top 8 boys lose 12-0 against Graeme College, second match lose 12-0 against Kingswood, and unfortunately the third match was also lost 12-0 against St Andrews. The boys enjoyed their matches but unfortunately the competition was quite strong.
Union top 8 girls won their first match 11-1 against Victoria Girls High, their second match against Kingswood resulted in a tie breaker and the victory went to Union. In their 3rd match, our girls were unable to beat DSG and suffered a 12-0 loss. Nonetheless the Union top 8 girls ended in 3rd place overall.
It was a very long and tiring day for our players, who only arrived back in Graaff-Reinet at 9h30pm on Sunday evening. We are still grateful for the opportunity and exposure provided to our players. Well done to Union!
It is with great pleasure that we ๐๐ข๐ก๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐๐๐ง๐ the following Union tennis players on their selection to represent the Eastern Cape, in their respective age groups, at the upcoming National Schools’ Week in January and Synergy Cup in February:
Cayla Newton, Amelia King, Tara Ferreira and Taylor Jacobs
We are thrilled to announce an exciting ๐ก๐๐ช ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ฅ ๐ง๐๐ก๐ก๐๐ฆ at the Union Schools!
Born to Play Tennis Academy, led by the dynamic duo Tiaan and Lente Mostert, will be taking over the reins of our tennis programme, catering to players from u/10 level all the way through to our senior first teams.
๐๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ง๐ถ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ ๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ brings a wealth of experience to our programme, boasting around 10 years of coaching expertise. As a junior player under 18, he had the honour of representing his country in international competitions in England and Scotland. His dedication to the sport has played a pivotal role in the development of many young players, earning him immense respect and admiration from those he coaches. Tiaan is known for his exceptional technical skills – thereโs no shot he canโt teach! His passion for the game and commitment to his players make him an invaluable asset to our tennis community.
๐๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ ๐ ๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ is no stranger to success. As a former junior player, she achieved an impressive ranking of #4 among women in South Africa during her under 18 years. Lente also had the privilege of representing her country and was awarded a prestigious scholarship to play college tennis in the USA. Her journey in tennis has fueled her passion for promoting health and fitness, which she shares with her students through the sport. Lente’s enthusiasm and expertise will undoubtedly inspire our players to reach new heights.
๐ง๐ถ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ท๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐; ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ป๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ผ. Their mission is to cultivate a love for tennis among players of all ages and skill levels. They aim to help our athletes compete effectively with larger schools, ensuring that every player has the opportunity to thrive. With their guidance, we are confident that our tennis programme will flourish, fostering talent and sportsmanship in our young players.
This past weekend, four of Union High School, Graaff-Reinetโs top junior boysโ and girlsโ tennis players participated in the annual ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐น๐๐ป ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ ๐ง๐ฒ๐ป๐ป๐ถ๐ ๐ง๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ป๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ held in Graaff-Reinet.
Over the course of two exciting days, our players not only showcased their skills on the court but also embraced the spirit of sportsmanship and camaraderie.
Competing against formidable teams from Worcester, Stellenbosch, Hermanus and Cradock, among other, both the boys’ and girls’ teams faced challenging matches that tested their abilities and character. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ฒ, ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐๐ต.
The tournament was not just about competition; it was also a chance for our athletes to bond and develop friendships with peers from other schools.
A special ๐ง๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ goes out to the members of staff, parents and supporters who accompanied our teams and cheered them on from the sidelines.
๐๐ข๐ก๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก๐ฆ ๐ง๐ข the following Union tennis players on their inclusion in the Zone 2 Sarah Baartman District Teams:
On Tuesday afternoon, 12 October, Union High School’s Top 6 boys and girls tennis players hosted their Cradock High School counterparts for what turned out to be a very enjoyable afternoon of tennis.
All the matches were played in great spirit and tightly contested and we extend our thanks to the Cradock players for travelling to Graaff-Reinet and their wonderful sportsmanship.
Union High Schoolโs Top 12 senior tennis boys resumed tennis practice in full force this week. After months of no sport, it was heartwarming to see their enjoyment.
๐/๐ญ๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐น๐:
