STOWE SCHOOL TENNIS: Aegon Senior Schools Competition.
The Road to Bolton
For only the second time, Stowe School entered The Aegon National Senior Students Competition last season.
The competition started back in October 2012 where four local schools are put in a round robin box to compete against each other. The four schools were Stowe School, Tudor Hall, Northampton High School and The Mark Rutherford School. The format for the competition is four singles matches and two doubles matches. If the score is three sets all at the end of the six matches, then a doubles tiebreak is played to 10 points to decide the winner. Having been runner up in their box in 2011, Stowe went one better this time by winning their box. This now gave the team a place in the knockout stage to be played from January to March.
The girls involved throughout were Megan Duckett (Captain), Charlotte Berrill, Sofia Purgina and Martina Fidanova.
Their first opponents were Wyggeston & Queen Elizabeth I College from Leicester. Winning three out of the four singles put Stowe in a strong position going into the two doubles match. An overall score line of four sets to two saw a comfortable win through to the next round.
The next round Stowe came across Comberton Village College from near Cambridge. All the girls were aware that the winner of this round would put them through to the National Finals. After a slightly nervous start by all the girls, Stowe went into a three sets to one lead after the singles. With the nerves a little more under control Megan and Charlotte won their doubles six games to one, and Sofia and Marty won theirs six games to love. A very conclusive five sets to one victory for Stowe.
The finals weekend, 15 -17 March 2013, was played at Bolton Arena over two days with schools having won through from all different parts of the country. Every school in the finals put on a brilliant display of tennis and Stowe finished fourth in their group. Head of Tennis at Stowe School John Skinner said, “I am extremely proud of the girls for making it to the finals” “All the hard work they have put in through the winter months has paid off”. He went on to say, “The girls were so excited to have got to the finals, and after the event they all said what a fantastic experience it had been”. Isaac Michael, the Director of Sport commented, "This has been a super tournament for our Elite tennis players over the winter period. They should start their main tennis term in the summer much sharper as a result. With all the girls still at Stowe next season there is no reason why we should not progress even further in the competition next year. We are all thrilled with what the girls have achieved this year." One final note of congratulations goes to Sofia who throughout the entire competition never lost a set of singles.
This year’s competition starts again on 16 October with both the boys and girls competing in a local round robin event. The winner of the round robin box then progresses to the knock out stage in January 2014. All quarter finalists then go to Bolton in March 2014.
Head of Tennis John Skinner hopes that both teams initially make it through to the knock out stage and then progress through to the finals. We are fortunate that last year’s girls finalists are still with us.
You can follow the School and the team’s efforts @stowemail on Twitter.
Stowe School
Stowe School is a co-educational independent school in Buckinghamshire, founded on 11 May 1923.
www.stowe.co.uk
For more information please contact:
Tori Roddy
Director of Marketing and Admissions
Stowe School
Stowe
Buckingham MK18 5EH
troddy@stowe.co.uk
01280 818355