Emporia High sophomore Chris Reimer did all the things in the offseason he was supposed to do if he wanted to become a better tennis player.
He practiced, he worked out in Topeka with a trainer, he played in tournaments, he lifted weights to get stronger.
But the thing that might have the greatest effect on his game came from something he couldn’t control.
He grew about 4 inches.
Last season as a freshman, Reimer was almost always at a disadvantage when he stepped out onto the court against opponents who outsized him.
Now, Reimer, who stands at about 5-7, can’t help but notice just how different the game looks and feels after his growth spurt.
“It (being taller) helps my serve, it helps my net game, it helps my power — it helps pretty much everything about my game,” Reimer said. “I think I’ve improved a lot. I’ve grown. I’ve gotten stronger. My strokes have gotten better. I can tell the difference with how I play, and it’s pretty exciting.”
Reimer, who made it to State last year, returns as one of several crucial cogs for the Emporia High boys tennis team, which begins its season today.
He’ll most likely man the No. 1 singles spot this season, save for a few forays into doubles action here and there.
EHS coach Matt Irby said new height aside, the effort Reimer put into getting better in turn made him a more complete tennis player — one who just so happens to be 4 inches taller.
“He has grown, and that will help. But he hit a lot last summer and over the winter, and that just kind of helped him fine tune some of the aspects of his game,” Irby said. “He’s improved a lot, and he should be successful all year.”
Not much of the rest of the lineup is set for the Emporia High boys as they enter the season.
But with seven seniors and a sizable group of underclassmen, Irby said a solid foundation is in place for some good tennis this spring.
“We’ve got a good nucleus,” Irby said. “We’ve got some spots that are still up in the air, but we’ve got a lot to work with.”
One spot that appears to be more set than others is the No. 1 doubles pairing.
With the graduation of last year’s No. 1 doubles duo of Kyle deBlonk and Grant Price, it appears senior Mark DeDonder and junior Jonathan Roman, who competed at Regionals last year as the No. 2 doubles team, will slide up into the No. 1 pairing.
A year after the two first became doubles partners, DeDonder said the familiarity between he and Roman would pay off this season.
“We have a lot of high expectations this year,” DeDonder said. “Last year was my first year knowing him (Roman) and playing with him. It was kind of awkward at first because we really didn’t have that bond yet.
“You need partnership; you need friendship. That’s what you need to win games. You need that communication. I think we’ve gotten better with that, and we’ve grown as teammates.”
But there is the probability that DeDonder and Roman will play some singles matches this season and even experiment with different pairings in doubles squads with a sizable pool of experienced talent, as also expected to receive ample varsity time this season in either singles or doubles play are seniors Adam Coburn, Brandon Heavener, David Nasrazadani, Nathan Ferree, Sergio Segura and Chase Miller.
Irby said the early stages of the season would be about finding what works and what doesn’t.
“It’s kind of wait and see right now,” Irby said. “These early meets are a chance to see what doubles teams work well together, to analyze where their strokes are at and how they deal with in-game pressure. It’s a learning experience for everybody.”
The Emporia High boys open their season at 3 p.m. today when they play host to the six-team Emporia Invitational at the EHS tennis courts. EHS will hold two more home invites this week — one on Thursday and another on Saturday.