Each bench has a plaque in honor of Kaitlin Miller, a former player who died in 2013. (Amanda Cowan/The Columbian)Photo Gallery
There are a lot of layers to the tennis courts at Skyview High School.
Over the summer, Skyview’s four courts received a much-needed resurfacing.
The new-look courts also received a gift courtesy of an Eagle Scout project by sophomore Christopher Sheppert in memory of a former Skyview tennis player.
Sheppert, who plays for the Skyview boys tennis team, decided benches for the courts would be ideal — for today’s players and to pay tribute to a former player who died in 2013, Kaitlin Miller.
The courts at Skyview were original to the school, which opened in 1997. The playing surface was worn and becoming a hazard to the players. Coaches at the school said they’ve been wanting a resurfacing done for the past seven years.
(Industry experts say tennis courts should be resurfaced every five years. But of course, industry experts don’t deal with school district budgets.)
The resurfacing was done over the summer, and the finishing touch of the project was done by Sheppert.
“It took a while to find the benches with the budget we were working with,” Sheppert said, adding that things like colors and material durability were among the things that had to be considered. “They were easy to put together, and I had lots of community support, and my church group helped.”
Sheppert said the hardest part of the project was bolting down the benches.
“I learned a lot about bolts and how they work,” said Sheppert, who is now one merit badge from becoming an Eagle Scout.
The capper to the project was finding a way to honor the memory of Miller, who died from injuries in a car accident in the summer of 2013, after her junior year.
Lots of ideas were considered for the tennis courts Miller enjoyed playing on as a member of the Skyview team.
Parents Mike and Tracy Miller offered to fund the cost of the benches, so it was decided to put Kaitlin Miller’s name on a plaque on each bench.
“It was a great idea,” Tracy Miller said. “We wanted it to be something useful and it had to look good and amazing.”
It turned into a family event when the benches were installed.
Now the players have solid footing for playing, solid benches to relax on between points, and the Skyview community can see Kaitlin Miller’s name whenever they use the courts.
Boys tennis storylines for 2015
• It’s all about the young players in the 4A GSHL. Spencer Kang (freshman) of Camas, singles district runner-up Andrew Kabacy (sophomore) of Skyview, Gunnar Harlan (sophomore) and Darrian Manalo (sophomore) of Battle Ground, and Alex Calpagui (sophomore) of Union makeup a solid group of up-and-coming players to watch.
• Upperclassmen will have their say. Mountain View seniors Colton Reed and Nick Shiraishi, plus Columbia River senior Owen Carlson could each make a run at a return to state be it in singles or doubles.
• At nearly the halfway point in the 4A GSHL, Union is the only undefeated team, with last year’s team champ Mountain View right behind. In the 3A GSHL, Columbia River appears to be the class of the three-team lead at 3-0. Hudson’s Bay is out to defend its 2A GSHL title, and matches against R.A. Long will go a long way in deciding that.
• The 4A GSHL will have a bi-district event with the hopes of getting an additional spot in the state tournament in May. The district champ in singles and doubles will play the No. 2 representative from the KingCo (District 2), and the No. 2 GSHL will play No. 3 KingCo for spots to state. Those matches will be at Club Green Meadows the week after the district tournament.
• For more on the high school tennis season, see the “Making a Racket” entries on the high school sports blog.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Other area tennis courts have seen recent work as well. Prairie High School's courts were resurfaced in the summer of 2014, and Hudson's Bay had its courts resurfaced the summer of 2013.
