Jack Kennedy earns two titles on final day of USTA 14s National Clay Court Championships in Dothan | High-school

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With a hop, skip and a jump – along with a wide array of winning shots – Jack Kennedy of Huntington, N.Y., was part of two USTA Boys 14 National Clay Court Championships victories at the Westgate Tennis Center in Dothan on Sunday.

Kennedy won the singles title by defeating Gus Grumet of Mills Valley, Calif., 6-2, 6-4 and then teamed with Sebastian Bielen of Glen Cove, N.Y., to win the doubles championship by beating Yannik Alvarez of Cumming, Ga., and Ryan Cozad of Alpharetta, Ga., 6-3, 6-3.

The animated Kennedy didn’t mind letting out a shout after a strong shot, or skip over to his towel to wipe away some sweat or even strike a muscle pose after a win.

But most of all, he displayed tremendous tennis skills in putting away his opponents throughout the week-long tournament.

“It’s a very big accomplishment for me and my team and my family,” Kennedy said. “This was a goal of mine to achieve and I finally did it.”

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It concluded a big month for Kennedy, who won an early July tournament in Greensboro, N.C., leading up to the victory in Dothan.

“That was a tournament I played before this to get ready for competitive match play,” Kennedy said. “I feel like that tournament really gave me confidence going into this tournament.”

It was the first ever meeting between the two singles finalists on Sunday and it took a while for Kennedy to feel comfortable against the steady play of Grumet, a mild-mannered competitor who was awarded the sportsmanship award for the tournament.

“His backhand was a little powerful in the beginning … he was going for his shots,” Kennedy said. “But then when I got used to it and was controlling the points more, I got more comfortable and the nerves were definitely less.”

Another key for Kennedy, as it had been throughout the tournament, was a drop shot that had Grumet hitting into the net often once reaching the ball.

“The drop shot is very effective to bring the person forward, especially if it’s going well,” Kennedy said.

With rain interrupting play often during the course of the week along with hot, sunny weather at other times, Kennedy said much of success revolved around staying strong mentally.

“The conditions down here are very tough from where I am in New York, but it was also very tough mentally with all of the rain delays and everything,” Kennedy said. “I just had to be prepared for every match and bring my all.”

Though Kennedy had played in a tournament in Alabama (Mobile) in the past, it was his first trip to Dothan and he came away impressed.

“It’s a great facility to host a tournament,” Kennedy said. “There are multiple courts that are very, very good. I love everything around it and how it was run by everyone.”

Approximately 200 players from throughout the country took part in the national tournament for junior players ages 13 and 14. It was the first of its magnitude that has been hosted at the Westgate Tennis Center, Azalea Swim & Tennis Club and Dothan Country Club.

“We’ve been planning for this about six months and it’s just incredible to see it all happen,” said Aaron McCreight, the CEO of Visit Dothan. “I think we’ve done a pretty good job of dancing around the rain drops and getting this thing in. To be on schedule after the week we’ve had was pretty incredible.”

McCreight said the city has a two-year agreement with USTA to host the tournament and he’s hopeful it will turn into a long term deal.

“We just hope with these two years that we’ll show they’re better off staying here instead of going somewhere else,” McCreight said. “We took this from Miami … we’re by far the smallest destination hosting a Level I championship for USTA.

“I think we’ve proven ourselves. We have 32 courts within two miles of each other. Show me another city that has that. We have the hotel rooms, we have the restaurants and we have the attractions away from the courts to entertain the folks while they’re here. So we have everything they need and everything that they want.”

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