A Gaffney High Tennis Team Blast from the Past
From a March 1971 Gaffney Ledger, Coach Roger Smoak, a classmate of Marshall Frady at Furman 63 speculates on his squad and their upcoming season.
I think the first sentence got chopped from the end, But I believe he is talking about the left hander and Number two John Greene at first and gets Rajesh at the end. Other than that this piece reads pretty much as the original best I can figger:
Page 8A-The Gaffney Ledger-Wednesday, Mardh 10, 1971 GHS Tennis Team
His experience and cunning, along with his lefthanded serve should give him an edge in most of his matches," Smoke said. Bruce Adams, a junior, is playing number 3. Adams is a real determined player who doesn't take to losing lightly. He is a big strong boy and this helps him at net and on his serve. "Bruce only needs a little more experience and consistency to be a top notch player," according to Smoke. Playing number 4 is another junior, Timmy Gregory. Gregory is a player with fine form and this should help him develop into a fine player. He and Bruce Adams form a fine doubles team that is tough to beat. "Timmy is one of the keys to a good season. If Timmy becomes a little tougher mentally and improves a few of his strokes, then he will be a very tough player to beat." Stephen Fox is currently playing number 5. Fox last year became the first Gaffney player to reach the state semi-finals, eventually losing to the state champion in his bracket. "Stephen has the strokes but must learn to bear down and concentrate in order to reach his full potential. If he does, then he'll be a fine tennis player," Smoke said. Harry Poole is playing number 6. Poole, a junior, will be trying to fill the shoes of Steve Taylor who graduated last year. Poole is the only player without much experience as he only began playing tennis about a year ago. "Harry has a wonderful attitude and really loves the game," Smoke said. When he develops his confidence and gains some experience and consistency, then he'll become a very steady player." The remainder of the squad consists of Bob Graves, a junior; Ricky Poole, Jay Hammett, Charles Smith, Robert Stuart, sophomores; and Jerome Williams and Billy Cox, freshmen. These boys have fine attitudes and could develop into good tennis players if they continue to practice and improve. The team is off to a good start this year, having beaten Shelby 5-4 last Friday. This is the first victory over Shelby which traditionally has a fine tennis team. This should give the team confidence for the tough The Gaffney High School Tennis Team, in its fourth year of existence, expects to field its best team this year. It takes a while to build a good tennis program because tennis is a difficult sport to learn, and it takes several years' to develop a competitive tennis player. "I feel that this is our best team by far, but it may not be record-wise since we are playing the best tennis teams in this area," said Coach Roger Smoke. "Shelby, Wade Hampton, Spartanburg, Rock Hill, and J. L. Mann all have very fine teams which will be tough to beat, but for the first time, we feel that we can be competitive with them." In three years, the team has progressed from a 3-6 record the first year to 9-4 the second year and last year's record was 9-6 against some of the best teams in this area. Last year's team also finished sixth in the state. There are 13 members on this year's team which is being built around 3 seniors. These seniors, all lettermen, are Rajesh Mehta, John Greene and Stephen Fox. Behind them are 4 juniors, 4 sophomores, and 2 freshmen. Playing number 1 at present is Rajesh Mehra. Mehra had a fine 8-5 record last year in his first year of regular varsity play. He is a dedicated player who works at tennis year round and has worked very hard to develop his serve and volley, and this should make him more effective this year. "Rajesh has improved more over the past two years than any player I've ever seen. He only lacks tournament experience to rank with the best players in the state," Smoke said. John Greene is playing number 2. Greene has played as a regular since the 9th grade when the team was first formed, and his experience will certainly be an asset to the team.
I think the first sentence got chopped from the end, But I believe he is talking about the left hander and Number two John Greene at first and gets Rajesh at the end. Other than that this piece reads pretty much as the original best I can figger:
Page 8A-The Gaffney Ledger-Wednesday, Mardh 10, 1971 GHS Tennis Team
His experience and cunning, along with his lefthanded serve should give him an edge in most of his matches," Smoke said. Bruce Adams, a junior, is playing number 3. Adams is a real determined player who doesn't take to losing lightly. He is a big strong boy and this helps him at net and on his serve. "Bruce only needs a little more experience and consistency to be a top notch player," according to Smoke. Playing number 4 is another junior, Timmy Gregory. Gregory is a player with fine form and this should help him develop into a fine player. He and Bruce Adams form a fine doubles team that is tough to beat. "Timmy is one of the keys to a good season. If Timmy becomes a little tougher mentally and improves a few of his strokes, then he will be a very tough player to beat." Stephen Fox is currently playing number 5. Fox last year became the first Gaffney player to reach the state semi-finals, eventually losing to the state champion in his bracket. "Stephen has the strokes but must learn to bear down and concentrate in order to reach his full potential. If he does, then he'll be a fine tennis player," Smoke said. Harry Poole is playing number 6. Poole, a junior, will be trying to fill the shoes of Steve Taylor who graduated last year. Poole is the only player without much experience as he only began playing tennis about a year ago. "Harry has a wonderful attitude and really loves the game," Smoke said. When he develops his confidence and gains some experience and consistency, then he'll become a very steady player." The remainder of the squad consists of Bob Graves, a junior; Ricky Poole, Jay Hammett, Charles Smith, Robert Stuart, sophomores; and Jerome Williams and Billy Cox, freshmen. These boys have fine attitudes and could develop into good tennis players if they continue to practice and improve. The team is off to a good start this year, having beaten Shelby 5-4 last Friday. This is the first victory over Shelby which traditionally has a fine tennis team. This should give the team confidence for the tough The Gaffney High School Tennis Team, in its fourth year of existence, expects to field its best team this year. It takes a while to build a good tennis program because tennis is a difficult sport to learn, and it takes several years' to develop a competitive tennis player. "I feel that this is our best team by far, but it may not be record-wise since we are playing the best tennis teams in this area," said Coach Roger Smoke. "Shelby, Wade Hampton, Spartanburg, Rock Hill, and J. L. Mann all have very fine teams which will be tough to beat, but for the first time, we feel that we can be competitive with them." In three years, the team has progressed from a 3-6 record the first year to 9-4 the second year and last year's record was 9-6 against some of the best teams in this area. Last year's team also finished sixth in the state. There are 13 members on this year's team which is being built around 3 seniors. These seniors, all lettermen, are Rajesh Mehta, John Greene and Stephen Fox. Behind them are 4 juniors, 4 sophomores, and 2 freshmen. Playing number 1 at present is Rajesh Mehra. Mehra had a fine 8-5 record last year in his first year of regular varsity play. He is a dedicated player who works at tennis year round and has worked very hard to develop his serve and volley, and this should make him more effective this year. "Rajesh has improved more over the past two years than any player I've ever seen. He only lacks tournament experience to rank with the best players in the state," Smoke said. John Greene is playing number 2. Greene has played as a regular since the 9th grade when the team was first formed, and his experience will certainly be an asset to the team.
posted by foxofbama | 1:54 PM
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