2nd Annual USTA MS College Showcase
USTA Mississippi hosted its second annual College Showcase on July 14 at River Hills Club in Jackson.
The College Showcase is an event designed for rising high school juniors and seniors to connect to college coaches and get exposure. The high school players have the opportunity to show their skills on court with a warm up followed by doubles and singles matches, with the event also featuring a Q&A session with the coaches.
The event was limited to 24 boys and 24 girls, for 48 spots total, with each group having 90 minutes of on court match play while the coaches were able to watch and make notes on the players.
Seventeen schools were in attendance, representing NCAA Division 1, 2, 3 as well as NAIA and Junior College. Having such a wide range of schools is helpful during the Q&A portion, where all the players could listen to the differences between the schools and the level of tennis. The college coaches value this session as well, as it allows them time to share what information they want everyone to know about their school. Players were able to ask questions which ranged from “What are practices like?” to “How far away is the nearest hibachi restaurant?”. Most of the questions were about what coaches look for in a player and what are the best things that the players can do to help them get noticed by a coach.
“The showcase is so important to both the athletes and coaches. For the players and parents to have direct contact with so many coaches at once is invaluable to all of us,” said Jacki Millet, head coach at Hinds Community College. “As a coach I look forward to it every year. It’s an excellent event. We greatly appreciate all the hard work that USTA Mississippi has put in to make it a success.”
The event had over 100 players and parents in attendance, with most being there for the coaching Q&A session in between the two on court portions. “We would like to thank River Hills Club for being a great partner in making this event the success that it is,” said William Foreman, Competitive Pathway Director at USTA Mississippi who also served as the director of the College Showcase. “Having a great venue for this showcase helps us to provide a first class experience for the players in Mississippi and for our coaches who are looking to recruit players from our state. We are looking forward to continuing to grow this event in the future and are already working on ways to make the 2024 showcase even better.”
