Olympia tennis standouts are examples for teammates

As senior Olympia tennis players Kaden Funk and Arianna Beltrame look ahead to their college tennis careers, they also have much to look back on. 

Take, for instance, the time when both the girls and boys teams made it to state in 2015, when Beltrame won the line 2 slot.

Or in 2014, when Funk was state champion. At Olympia, he has boasted a 45-1 record in singles. 

Despite all the success they have achieved individually through USTA and high-school competition, the greatest part about playing at Olympia was being with the team. 

“We were all there together,” Beltrame said of the states match in 2015. “It was like a whole family. I was playing a match and my whole team was lined up on the side of the court, cheering me on, and that was a different experience than I’ve ever had, because USTA is really quiet, and you don’t have a team.” 

Currently, the boys team is undefeated. This year, the state competition is more team-based than individually based, Funk said. So for his senior year, Funk wants his team to succeed at states.

“This year, I’m really hoping that some of the guys can step up their bottom lines and win some matches,” Funk said. “If we get some medals, that’s kind of the overall goal for the team.” 

Funk and Beltrame are both grateful for how coaches Bubba James and Carol Haderer worked with them as they juggled other USTA matches and practices with high-school competition. 

“Coach Bubba and Coach Carol have been awesome coaches,” Beltrame said. “They’ve always been huge supporters. They come to even my USTA matches to watch, and they’ve never ever pressured me to do anything I didn’t want to do. They’ve always worked with me and my schedule.”

But their coaches feel that their hard work in both USTA and high-school tennis has inspired their teammates to aspire to improve their own games. 

“Their leadership and the drive they have have really brought them to a higher level,” James said. 

Beltrame’s tenacity in matches motivates her teammates to imitate her style, James said. 

“(Beltrame) never backs off,” he said. “She plays every point like it’s her first point and her last point.”

Next year, Funk will take his game to the University of Pennsylvania, where he will also study finance — something that interests him just as much as tennis. 

To prepare for college, Funk plans to mold his game into something that will translate easily into indoor court play. In an indoor court, the size is the same, but the surface is different. The ball bounces much more quickly. To adjust, Funk needs to develop a bigger serve, bigger forehand, shorter points and more volleys at the net. He plans to keep training with his coach at Bay Hill, Matt Rineberg, and his fitness trainer, Rod Jette.

Beltrame will play tennis for Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama.

Contact Jennifer Nesslar at [email protected].