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Wakeland tennis ready for all challengers
BY ANDREW MAY, Staff Writer
When Wakeland tennis coach Steve Schkade thinks back to this time last season, he gets a brain freeze. It’s not the kind that occurs after sipping Slurpees too suddenly, but rather a tool to block out painful memories.
“It seems like it’s been a lifetime ago,” he said.
Wakeland’s struggles during the fall season didn’t come as much of a surprise considering its loaded schedule and youthful roster. Schkade hadn’t planned on the Wolverines becoming the proverbial punching bag, but understood the possibility existed.
The growing pains have already paid off n both the boys and girls teams won District 9-3A championships in the spring n just as Schkade had hoped. The poundings came at the hands of 4A and above teams such as McKinney, McKinney North, The Colony, Frisco, Centennial, and Flower Mound. At the time, it was a rude awakening to life at the varsity level. Now, it is seen as the foundation of a program on the rise.
“We played a fairly tough schedule, but we got whooped up on pretty good,” Schkade said.
Wakeland will no longer fly under the radar as it did much of last season. Despite its youth, the Wolverines have players that could compete for many 4A teams in the area. And the talent pool is only getting deeper.
Schkade predicts that his top two male starters will be freshmen Aaron Chaffee and Jordan Reed. That duo will join junior Cameron Salmon and senior Christian O’Rourke, who placed third in doubles at regionals in the spring. Along with sophomore Kaleb Swanson, Bracken and Garrett Seaberg, and Nick Strohla, the depth will difficult for opponents to deal with.
“Our top 10 guys are going to be really solid,” Schkade said. “3A teams aren’t as deep as we are so we will have an advantage at the bottom (of the roster).”
The girls side is just as stacked. Merida Thurmon and Yesenia Campos headline a solid sophomore group, while Monika Sok is one of the top juniors. All have the assurance they lacked last fall after hanging tough with some of the state’s best 3A teams in the spring.
“They have a lot of confidence,” Schkade said. “It was a situation that showed them what we were doing works and now they understand why we are doing certain things.”
Schkade has again loaded the fall schedule with 4A schools and elite 3A programs like Kaufman, Sweetwater, and Wills Point.
“It will give us a good idea of how we are stacking up with the top teams in our division,” he said.
Wakeland will play in the Frisco team tournament next weekend before hosting Sherman in September. Though the fall campaign is generally a primer for the spring, Schkade doesn’t want to repeat what happened last season.
“I certainly want to be more competitive with the 4A teams,” he said. “It will help to solidify our team going into the spring having been in a lot of tough situations. There is nothing to lose in the fall; it is only going to make us better.”
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