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Move Up In Age Doesn't Slow Collins

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By NICHOLAS J.E. MURRAY, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 23, 2008

TAMPA - Four years ago, Danielle Collins of St. Petersburg was the top under-12 tennis player in Florida. Having achieved all she could at the under-12 level, she stepped up. Except instead of moving up to the next age level, under-14, she went all the way up, competing in under-18 tournaments.

Wednesday, Collins won the USTA National Open at the City of Tampa Tennis Center, 6-2, 6-2 against Rachel Saiontz of Miami. After struggling early in the transition to facing bigger, stronger athletes, Collins thinks the win validated her and her father's decision to move so far up in age.

"At first I wasn't doing so good," Collins said. "And people were kind of like, 'Well you should be playing 14-and-under,' but I didn't. And eventually I started doing better in designated, sectionals.

"After I lost a few tournaments I didn't think it was the right move, but my dad wanted me to play the 18s, he thought it was the best move and I agreed. Then I played in sectional here about a month ago, and I got third, and I felt I played relatively well, but winning this tournament means an awful lot to me."

"Fitness has helped a lot," Collins said. "I've started doing fitness training three days a week in Clearwater with Curtis McGee, and it's helped a lot. ... Now I'm starting to get stronger and stronger, so when I walk onto court I don't feel like my opponent is stronger than I am. I feel like I'm the stronger player, and that gives me confidence."

Collins did not drop a set through all six matches, and after beating Grace Min in the opening round, her confidence grew. Min is currently the No. 1 player in the U.S. at the under-14 level.

"I wasn't sure I could win my first-round match against Grace Min," Collins said. "I was really nervous playing against her, but then once I beat her it gave me a lot of confidence, and then I beat three other good players, and then I started being more confident in my shot selection."

Collins beat Natalie Collins of Vero Beach in the second round, 6-3, 7-6, and then No. 6 seed Taylor Fournier of Leawood, Kan., 6-2, 6-2. Wins against No. 4 seed Erin Viera of Norwell, Mass., and Amy Simidian of Naples put her into the final against Saiontz.

"She didn't make any unforced errors today, and that's how she beat me," Saiontz said. "The frustrating thing was that I didn't get any free points. Most players miss eventually, but she didn't, and deserved to win."

Locals Clubs Find Success At Score At The Shore

TAMPA - The key word for last weekend's Score at the Shore soccer tournament could easily have been "reunification," as club soccer got back into action six weeks ahead of the opening round of the State Cup tournament.

That reunification was easier for the local girls teams entered in the event, with most of the boys squads missing personnel due to the three local high school teams reaching the state final four in Fort Lauderdale.

For the RSL Florida girls under-16s, which reached the final of the tournament before falling 3-0 to the KCFC Revolution, the competition it got and the chance to work together as a team again left the team with a good feeling about its chances to make a run at a state title.

"I don't think everybody really believed we could make it to the finals because we haven't had many training sessions," RSL center back Amy Werdine said. "But we proved just how good of a team we are. We beat Team Boca, who we're going to have in the first round of State Cup; teams know we're a team to reckon with now."

The Countryside Premier under-17 squad also had a successful weekend, reaching the semifinals of its division before losing on penalties to Naperville.

Freedom Girls Aiming For 4th Straight Title

TAMPA - While six seniors have left Freedom's girls lacrosse roster, the team is still aiming high. The Patriots have won three straight West Florida League titles, and after a 7-6 win against FishHawk on Tuesday night, remained undefeated on the season so far.

Freedom lost a 5-1 second-half lead, but managed to prevail with a pair of late goals. It was the first real test for the Patriots this season.

"Until today's game, we had been looking really good," Freedom coach Ginger Bean said. "We won all three games in our jamboree, and then won our first regular-season game 19-0, but that was against a brand new team that just started from Ocala."

And while the Patriots have lost players, they have been able to replenish their ranks with athletes who have previous playing experience.

"We had about six graduating seniors last season," Bean said. "But we also had six or seven freshmen come in this year with experience because the New Tampa Raiders Lacrosse Association has a middle school program and a youth program, and the girls who were playing there are now playing for Freedom."

Those players, like Chelsea Derrigo, will join a core led by junior Jessica Wasserman and seniors Natalie Ray, Candice Stokes and Aarika Hymowitz. The Patriots have been boosted by the addition of experienced Kaitlyn Sullivan, who moved to Tampa from Boston.

While there have been changes on the field, off the field the coaches remain the same, although with altered roles this season with Bean taking the mantle of head coach and former head coach Deborah Wood becoming an assistant. Bean will also be coaching the Raiders' middle school program.

Nicholas J.E. Murray can be reached at (813) 259-8243 or nmurray@tampatrib.com. Keyword: Youth Sports, for more news and notes.

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