By Joe Lanane, For The Herald Bulletin
PENDLETON — After anchoring the Pendleton Heights boys tennis team for four years, it’s hard to imagine a time when Matt Tran didn’t excel at tennis.
On the contrary, the senior did not even pick up his first tennis racket until eighth grade when the natural athlete was encouraged by those around him to pursue the sport. It was never a primary focus for Tran, who instead made academics his primary focus growing up.
“My parents definitely taught me that school comes first, but every time I wasn’t studying I was on the court,” Tran said. “Tennis-wise, I’ve wanted to do it, and I’ve just pushed myself.”
The Herald Bulletin Boys Tennis Player of the Year not only served as the PHHS No. 1 singles competitor all four years, he will graduate next May as one of four Pendleton student-athletes in the top five of the 2010 class — with Tran ranking No. 4.
Pendleton Heights Athletic Director John Broughton said it is all part of the “total product” his school attempts to produce.
“We really emphasize to all our coaches that academics is first and athletics is second,” Broughton said. “We just know athletics is good for them, and part of that is just time management and keeping their priorities straight.”
Tran applied that same strict mindset to his tennis efforts, where he said he improved drastically since taking over the No. 1 slot his freshman year. Playing soccer and basketball growing up, he was already an experienced athlete. It was his refusal to lose, however, that instantly elevated Tran among the area’s elite tennis players the last half-decade.
His continuing improvement ran parallel with his team’s success, watching the program go from winning only a couple matches his freshman year to going 18-4 his final season — including a personal 23-3 record.
“There was a lot of pressure freshman year, but not as much because you are a freshman and no one expects you to win,” Tran said. “But senior year, all the pressure is on you, and you’re the favorite, and you have to live up to those expectations.”
He did just that, advancing past sectionals before dropping his regional matchup to eventual singles state champion Dougie Barnard of Brebeuf Jesuit. His success rubbed off on his teammates, easing the transition for Royce Hammel’s first season as boys tennis coach.
Having already coached Tran a couple years at the indoor level, Hammel was able to lean on his star senior when learning about his new squad. He also knew Tran was a safe bet in singles competition, allowing him to shift his focus elsewhere.
“It was nice to have him there because you could always count on his win,” Hammel said, “and then you could devote more time to gain the points to win the team match. I told him a couple times I may not always be around his match because he’s going to win, and I need to concentrate on the others to get them going for the team victory.”
He considered Tran the ultimate “team player” who often served as a second coach even when Hammel was not around. It was all part of the well-rounded character everyone surrounding Tran has come to expect.
“He’s put a lot of time into his game, and on top of that he’s just a great kid to begin with,” Hammel said. “For him to go out and practice even after our practice — even on evenings and weekends — he put a lot of time in, and it showed.”
Tran’s tennis future remains uncertain, depending largely on which schools accept the scholar-athlete. He said he may attempt to walk onto the team at his first choice, Butler, and that academics will ultimately determine his school of choice — not tennis. Other possibilities include Ferris State, the University of Indianapolis, IUPUI, Wabash, Franklin College and Depauw.
Even if Tran does not continue his tennis career, he said he will always have his senior season to draw memories from.
“I really enjoyed it, especially compared to the other years,” Tran said. “It was a lot more of a team environment. We were very unified, and we were a lot more successful, too.”
