Q&A with Peter Militzer and players from Portage Central HS girls tennis
PORTAGE, Mich. — Congratulations to the Portage Central High School鈥檚 girls鈥� tennis team, who finished with a phenomenal record of 15-2, only losing to teams ranked #1 and #3 in the state, and finishing 4th in the state, the team鈥檚 highest finish ever. The team was undefeated in SMAC Conference dual matches, won the Conference and Regional tournaments.
When asked the secret to the team鈥檚 success, coach Peter Militzer said, 鈥淕ood teams generally have two things, and we had both 鈥� great leaders and depth. The best teams get points out of every position in their lineup, and we did that. We had three senior captains and they did a nice job of leading, pushing, encouraging, and motivating.鈥�
We checked in with a couple of PCHS players to learn more about them, Anna Dinsmore, Mindy Hueng, and Carly Smith.
What grade are you in, and how long have you played on this team?
Anna Dinsmore: I am going into my senior year, and have been on the team for two years.
Mindy Hueng: I am going to be a senior, and have been on varsity since freshman year, which was cancelled due to COVID.
Carly Smith: This past season I was a senior and played on the varsity team for four years.
What is a rule or piece of advice you live by?
Dinsmore: Play each match point by point and only think about the current point and winning this point.
Hueng: I tell myself to always have fun. As a doubles player, I make sure I work well with my partner, and match their personality. Otherwise, I tell myself to work hard and to push to accomplish what I need to.
Smith: Don鈥檛 take competition personally, in order to do your best you have to keep a level head.
How would you describe your personality?
Dinsmore: I consider myself to be calm, strategic, hardworking, persistent, and caring.
Hueng: I鈥檓 someone who can fit with anyone. I am friendly and competitive, both on the court and in my social life. I am also a very bubbly person that just likes to smile 24/7.
Smith: On the court, my personality tends to be very positive, calm, and competitive.
What do you appreciate about your coach?
Dinsmore: I appreciate how my high school coaches always had faith in me, no matter what the score was in my matches.
Hueng: My coaches always provide me the best advice, help me keep stay positive, and make me laugh! They are people who I can rely on.
Smith: How much they have watched me and learned my game over the years so much that they know exactly what to say when I am in need of advice, or when I need them to say something random to loosen me up.
What do you appreciate about your team?
Dinsmore: I appreciate how supportive my team was throughout the season.
Hueng: My team are my friends and my family. They are people I love to be with. They are always cheering for me and helping our team to be as successful as we are.
Smith: I appreciate that most of us are willing to trust the coaches and follow what they say to bring a positive outcome for the team as a whole. Tennis can already feel like such an individually-oriented sport, most of my teammates continuously put forth the effort to make it feel like as much of a team as possible
Do you have a pre-game ritual?
Dinsmore: Before matches, I usually try to clear my mind and play games on my phone or listen to music.
Hueng: Our team always does our team cheer and my partner and I start talking to each other right after. We both do our little handshake that we made up and do some jumps to get us hyped up!
Smith: My partner, Mindy, and I would always jump around for at least a minute whether it was off the court and we were anticipating a match, or on the court if we started to fall into a lull during our match.
Coach Militzer just completed his 28th season coaching girls鈥� tennis all over town, after playing at PCHS and KVCC, and starting his coaching career at Portage Central Middle School, and at KVCC. His 鈥渞eal鈥� job involves tennis too, as he works at the YMCA of Greater Kalamazoo where he鈥檚 been involved with the tennis department for 20 years.
What is your coaching philosophy?聽
Peter Militzer: To develop student-athletes through education and competition, to help them learn self-discipline, integrity, sportsmanship, leadership, and social responsibility, and to create a sense of pride for students, faculty, and community 鈥� and to have fun.
How does the team encourage one another?聽
Militzer: Varsity candidates attend at least one collegiate match, and do a short write-up of what they saw and learned. Nearly every response begins with a comment about the team spirit and camaraderie displayed by the college players. We talk about that constantly 鈥� how can I be a better teammate?
Are there any standout moments?聽
Militzer: First was a dual match at Lakeshore, who had a good team, but in the days leading up to the match, three of our players came down with COVID. Then on the way to the match, another player became ill (not COVID), so we had to substitute four players against a really good opponent, yet we managed a 5-3 win. A couple weeks later we had our regular lineup back and played at Mattawan, a team we had been runner-up to for many seasons. We won 5-3, with two of those losses being very close. That showed me that we were one of the top teams in Division 2.
Describe your proudest moment this season.聽
Militzer: Looking up into the stands during the state tournament and seeing our girls enthusiastically rooting for other SMAC teams, and them cheering for us. We preach all season long that when we play Mattawan, or St. Joe, or BC Lakeview, that later in the year we want to be rooting for them and vice versa. It was evident during the state singles finals, when Mattawan won at #1 and #2 singles, we won at #3, and BC Lakeview won at #4. It was a SMAC sweep and all those teams were excited for everyone, not just for their own team. And of course, Anna Dinsmore won our school鈥檚 first-ever individual championship at #3 singles, defeating a girl who had defeated Anna earlier in the season.
Any standout players?聽
Militzer: Several players earned All State recognition: Deshana Betala, Anna Dinsmore, Diya Singh, Carly Smith, and Mindy Hueng, along with Elsa Peterson and Abbygayle Ruggiero receiving honorable mentions.
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