TENNIS / DANA HADDAD : Oxnard Showed Grit in Role of Underdog

For those who like underdogs, there is a new champion this week: the boys of the Oxnard Tennis Center.

The Oxnard Tennis Center’s 15-and-under team won the novice division title of the Southern California Junior Team Tennis championships Sunday at UCLA.

Oxnard defeated Fort Park from the Inland Empire, 3-1, in the championship match. The happiest member of the team had to be the coach, Mark McCampbell.

McCampbell wanted to prove when he signed on as pro at the Oxnard center that kids don’t have to pay big bucks to become good tennis players.

“I don’t have the staffing like other clubs,” said McCampbell, “but we give kids the opportunity to play where normally, at other places, they could not afford to play. These kids are a little hungrier. They want to play.”

When things got tough in Sunday’s semifinals, Oxnard got tougher.

Oxnard beat Seal Beach, 25-24, in games after the two teams split four sets. Then in the final, Oxnard got strong performances from No. 3 singles player Jared Lester, 12, who beat his opponent, 8-0, in a pro set, and No. 2 singles player Paul Parrish, 14, who rallied from a 6-3 deficit to win, 8-6.

McCampbell said his players come from middle- to lower-income families, many of them broken by divorce. But all his guys needed was an opportunity, he said.

“It makes me wonder what would happen if tennis courts were available where Michael Jordan grew up,” McCampbell said. “What if somebody like him had the opportunity?”

McCampbell has had success with other teams. Since 1989, four other Oxnard squads--all girls’ teams--have advanced to the playoffs, and one won a state title.

“Boys tend to go off and do other things--play other sports,” McCampbell said. “The girls put in more time. But I think this year, (the boys) realized they had a team that could win. They started practicing more, staying on the courts longer.

“The turning point was when we beat Cabrillo Racquet Club. They’re the powerhouse in our league. After that, I think they realized they had a chance to go all the way.”

McCampbell said Oxnard encountered teams that stacked the deck for the playoffs, picking up top players from different clubs in their regions.

“Even though this is novice level, these boys will certainly go on to play on their high school teams,” McCampbell said. “They all have a great opportunity. I think a couple of them have a chance to go on and play in college. Maybe a third of them will go off and do other sports. But about two-thirds will stay with tennis.”

The team included No. 1 singles player Kaden Walker, and alternating doubles players Bryan Lopez, Mark Sasaki and Paul Kim.

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The state of things: Oxnard’s boys won’t advance to the state level because the Southern California Tennis Assn. does not stage a state championship for novices in its Junior Team Tennis program. But one area team already has clinched a berth for the Gar Glenny Cup, the award for California’s top Junior age-group team.

Cabrillo’s 12-and-under intermediate boys’ team automatically qualified for the state final (Aug. 28-29 in Fresno) because it was Southern California champion in both the fall and spring leagues.

Three others are vying for the chance at a state title: Oxnard Tennis Center in 12-and-under intermediate girls, Camino Real Park (Ventura) in 15-and-under intermediate boys and Cabrillo Racquet Club (Camarillo) in 15-and-under intermediate girls.

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Sectional hopefuls: The qualifying round of what has been called the biggest Junior tournament in North America--the Southern California sectional--started Thursday at Los Caballeros Sports Village in Fountain Valley. More than 21,000 players are entered.

A group of local players, however, won’t have to worry about qualifying and won’t take the court until the main draw starts next Thursday. Those who have qualified include Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan of Camarillo and Jason Weiss of Calabasas, the second-, fourth- and fifth-seeded players in 16-and-under boys; Philip Tseng of Harvard-Westlake High, seeded third in 18-and-under boys; Monique Allegre of Camarillo, seeded sixth in 16-and-under girls, and Krissy Hamilton of Agoura Hills and Ania Bleszynski of Thousand Oaks, the top- and third-seeded players in 18-and-under girls.