Bethpage Park’s High School Coaches Workshop Returns

April 26, 2023 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff

 

The High School Coaches Workshop returned to Bethpage Park Tennis Center, as Steve Kaplan and his team brought the annual event back after a two-year hiatus.

The Workshop brings together local high school tennis coaches, both junior varsity and varsity, to learn from both Kaplan as well as other guest speakers about coaching techniques, proper warm-ups, how to coach a team, and the importance of high school tennis.

“After missing our High School coaches clinic for two years due to COVID-19, it was great to host some familiar faces as well as some new coaches,” said Kaplan. “High school tennis is an invaluable part of a young player’s tennis experience. I strongly advocate that all players will benefit from playing for their school team, even if they are at the highest level.”

Strength and conditioning coach Frank Dolan spoke to the coaches about how to properly warm-up their team prior to both practices and coaches, and put the coaches through a variety of drills and exercises to demonstrate.

Many times in high school competition, the visiting team gets off the bus and doesn’t have a lot of time to warm-up before the match begins. That puts a great deal of importance on how your team warms-up to ensure its an effective way to prepare for the upcoming match.

“A lot of high school tennis programs get out there and just start hitting. But what we wanted to emphasize is having an understanding of not just warming up to get a sweat going or get loose, but it’s also to change athleticism and improve movements if done the right way,” explained Dolan. “What we discussed today was doing things with intent, going through the full range of motions, thinking of keeping things in alignment, the right posture, and all those little details that help you avoid just going through the motions. I think I was able to provide something simple that the coaches can quickly take with them and apply it to their teams right away.”

Kaplan discussed many different drills that coaches can use with their teams to help with technique, including the proper serve toss and  grip, as well as how to generate power on the forehand and backhand shots. Alex Altman, Head Tennis Professional at the Tennis Club of Riverdale, spoke to the coaches on how to speak and deal with top junior players on their team, discussing the importance of establishing trust between a coach and player.

Long Island Tennis Magazine publisher David Sickmen spoke to the coaches regarding the extensive high school coverage we provide daily, and explained how they can submit scores and photos to have their team and players included in our daily recap articles which are posted both to our website and social media accounts.

All of this, combined with open play as well as hitting for prizes, created a well-rounded event that provided a number of local high school coaches with valuable information they can bring to their teams.

One of the primary goals Kaplan has with the annual workshop is to bring home just how important high school tennis is as he is a strong believer that all top junior players should play for their high school teams rather than sit out to strictly focus on private training.

“It’s short-sighted, as well as a self-fulfilling prophecy to dissuade the best players from school tennis by pointing to the lack of competition,” he said. “If everyone played, that would no longer be an issue. The industry needs to realize that school tennis is one of the most powerful agents to growing the sport.”

 

 


Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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