Athlete of the Week, Cameron Ball

Richard Dunn

To fully understand and appreciate Cameron Ball’s triumphant effort

at the Pacific Coast League boys tennis championships, one must turn the

clock back about a week.

There, at the 100th Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament, Ball upset No.

2-seeded Nicholas Weiss of Calabasas in the CIF Interscholastic Division.

These days, the term “upset” should be taken loosely with Ball, a

sophomore who is having quite a ball for Corona del Mar High.

In the PCL finals last week at the Racquet Club of Irvine, Ball powered

through three of the four seeds in the singles bracket -- teammate Brian

Morton, who plays No. 1 singles for the Sea Kings, being the only seeded

player Ball did not face on his way to the title.

“I never truly believed I could be on the same level as them, until

recently when I played them in league,” said Ball, referring to his clean

sweep over three seeded University players -- No. 4 Henry Mak in the

quarterfinals, No. 1 Jack Li in the semifinals and No. 3 Aaron Yovan in

the championship finals, 6-2, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3. Mak, Li and Yovan are all

nationally ranked junior players.

Ball, who has suffered through a variety of injuries in 2000, said he

“used to play with a little bit of fear,” but last week decided “to put

all my emotions aside and just do what I thought I should do ... I just

went for it. I went on my feelings.”

The son of a teaching professional and former Australian Davis Cup

member, Ball said his confidence increased at Ojai, where he beat Weiss,

last year’s CIF Southern Section singles runner-up to Phillip Sheng of

Thousand Oaks.

Ball, the Daily Pilot Athlete of the Week, became only the third CdM

player since 1990 -- and the second since Tim Mang took over as the Sea

Kings’ coach in 1993 -- to win a league singles championship.

“That kid deserves it,” Mang said of Ball’s Athlete of the Week honor.

“Cameron’s a nice kid and a hard worker, and he doesn’t like a lot of

press. He’s not cocky. When he won the championship, he really (didn’t

seem) that excited, because for him it’s just a step to work harder ...

that’s his whole attitude. He’s one of the hardest workers on the team.

What a great example to the other players. He makes it easier for me.”

Ball, the first Sea King to win a league singles title since freshman

Taylor Dent four years ago (Dave Bain won a Sea View League title in

1992), once had his big serve clocked at 120 mph. But “it was a bit of a

lucky hit,” he said modestly.

When asked to rank his best attributes on the court, Ball listed his

“attitude” first, followed by his serve-and-volley game.

In the finals, Ball chalked up 34 service winners against Yovan, at times

overpowering the Uni sophomore.

“I wanted to prove that I should’ve been seeded, even though I had a

broken finger (and missed 2 1/2 weeks in March),” said Ball, who also had

pulled hamstring and calf muscles this season, while continuing to

experience growing pains in his knees and hips.

Ball, 17, has sprouted at least three inches in the last year, but his

play on the hard courts is also reaching new heights.

“The hard work is just starting to pay off,” Ball said. “The long hours

of training and playing all came together at the right time.”

Ball, who played No. 2 singles behind Morton this season for Corona del

Mar, includes swimming, jump roping and sprinting up 200-yard hills in

the Upper Newport Bay as cross-training for his tennis game.

“Sometimes I run by myself, and sometimes with my dad (Syd), but he

doesn’t like going because he gets beat,” Ball said.

Actually, growing up with a tennis pro as a father has its advantages.

“We get along very well, and he helps out a ton,” Ball said. “To have a

dad who is also your coach, who knows so much and works with you, is a

real good situation to be in. It’s great to have that much knowledge in

the next room.”

Ball, who grew up with Dent and hits with the 19-year-old former CIF

singles champion when he’s in town and not traveling on the men’s pro

satellite tour, is looking forward to the day when he can follow his

dad’s footsteps and play pro tennis.

This season, Ball is 27-9 in singles. He finished third in the Sea View

League finals last year as a freshman. Ball will compete in the CIF

individual championships starting May 20.

In a memorable PCL title match, Ball won the first set easily, starting

things with three consecutive service winners.

In the second set, Ball was ahead in the tiebreaker, 5-2, but Yovan came

back with four consecutive points, then won, 8-6, to force a third set.

Ball broke Yovan in the first game of the third set to establish the

tone, then stayed up a break until the ninth, when he broke at 3-5,

concluding the match with a decisive overhead at the net.