Brothers of Viking Tennis, this is your manliest and hairiest representative speaking. With the exception of John Schmidt, but he is a God and cannot be compared with us mortals. Throughout the year, we’ve went on our bold conquests and showed our vigor in sacking the villages in foothill. Sadly, our journey comes to an end with a fork on the road, those who go to different ships to meet different kinds of people, and those who stay on this one to continue domination of the Foothill. Unfortunately, some of our main men are going away to different ships, among them are Tayven Townshend, Anders Jansson, John Schmidt, Russell Del Rosario and Evan Tikka.I would like to say a few words on their behalf.
Tayven – You were possibly the handsomest man to play tennis this year. By God man, I say quit everything and become a model. But in all sincerity, you were the epitome of hard work. You improved so much over the last 2 years, and you really were a solid number 2 singles. Props to leading the team with your much valued captinancy. I will treasure your nickname ‘the package’ for the rest of my life.
Anders- Oh Anders. You were certainly the biggest ladykiller Viking. My only wish is to see you showing off a thick mustache in a shoot for PlayViking magazine this year, but I digress… You were a great player and possibly the loosest player I have ever seen. You had some major swag and you tried to share your knowledge with me and other players too. Your someone who will be extremely missed and your conversations with Joseph will remain in the hearts of us Vikings forever.
Russell- Ah, Russell. The anime loving, cool hairstyling Filipino kid who I’ve known for all the years I’ve been on the tennis team. Boy will I miss you. You were a great doubles partner and extremely hard to please sometimes, but when I did somehow manage please you, I knew I was playing good. You taught me a lot about the game and I’ll really miss you leaving this ship. However, those who say goodbyes should be strong, and parting should only make one’s bond thicker to others and themselves. So ramble on Russell. Ramble on.
John Schmidt- JOHNNN!! I could go on forever about this guy. Not only are you the hairiest young man I have ever seen in my life, but you also have the greatest taste in orchestral music I have ever seen! I actually have a little anecdote to share about John. So Evan, John and I are coming back from another successful day in league. All of a sudden John says ‘hey guys, let’s play some epic music to intimidate the team!’ All of a sudden, I hear a myriad of violins shining through the light and I felt like I was in heaven right there in John’s car. We were cruising at a speed of 25 miles per hour while talking about the soundtracks of obscure films when we started talking about John’s notion of chivalry for women. Let’s just say Sir Lancelot would be proud.
Evan Tikka- Evan Tikka may have the most beautiful backhand I have ever seen in my life. Its like a butterfly, soaring through the woods with its brilliant wings flattering with the clarity of an angel and the resonance of a dream. I have no idea what that last sentence meant. Basically, the beauty of his backhand is in its mystery. I don’t know how he does it, but he hits it over hard with perfect placement and accuracy. However, as great as Evan’s backhand is, it’s his mental game that I am most envious of. He’s always calm under pressure, and steady when playing tough opponents. Most of all, he’s always having fun, and that’s something I want to do no matter how stressful the game I am playing is.
The point I am trying to get across is that all of these Vikings were more than just great warriors of battle; they were friends you could count on to give any kind of advice. As people, each one of them had a big heart and contributed as much as they could to help the team. In the long run, that’s what makes a team great; the desire to become better people and help others to become better people as well. This year, the seniors did it, and I’m sure that next year, the seniors will do it too.
Of course, we couldn’t succeed without the help of a great coach so special thanks to a great coach. Or coaches for this matter. Even when Jen and Miss Kellogg were running our heinies off, they were doing it to prepare us to be the best in the league. And that we were. FOOTHILL LEAGUE CHAMPIONS VIKINGS! A great cheer to a great year and a open the door to many more. Because the future is what awaits us, and as glorious as our past may be, that is what matters now. So with a heavy heart I say goodbye to this team which we will never have back, and ask to move forward. With a heavy heart, I leave all that is behind untouched and change what I can, the future. Come on Vikings, let’s build a good future. One ship at a time.
By Ronit Ghosh
Tayven – You were possibly the handsomest man to play tennis this year. By God man, I say quit everything and become a model. But in all sincerity, you were the epitome of hard work. You improved so much over the last 2 years, and you really were a solid number 2 singles. Props to leading the team with your much valued captinancy. I will treasure your nickname ‘the package’ for the rest of my life.
Anders- Oh Anders. You were certainly the biggest ladykiller Viking. My only wish is to see you showing off a thick mustache in a shoot for PlayViking magazine this year, but I digress… You were a great player and possibly the loosest player I have ever seen. You had some major swag and you tried to share your knowledge with me and other players too. Your someone who will be extremely missed and your conversations with Joseph will remain in the hearts of us Vikings forever.
Russell- Ah, Russell. The anime loving, cool hairstyling Filipino kid who I’ve known for all the years I’ve been on the tennis team. Boy will I miss you. You were a great doubles partner and extremely hard to please sometimes, but when I did somehow manage please you, I knew I was playing good. You taught me a lot about the game and I’ll really miss you leaving this ship. However, those who say goodbyes should be strong, and parting should only make one’s bond thicker to others and themselves. So ramble on Russell. Ramble on.
John Schmidt- JOHNNN!! I could go on forever about this guy. Not only are you the hairiest young man I have ever seen in my life, but you also have the greatest taste in orchestral music I have ever seen! I actually have a little anecdote to share about John. So Evan, John and I are coming back from another successful day in league. All of a sudden John says ‘hey guys, let’s play some epic music to intimidate the team!’ All of a sudden, I hear a myriad of violins shining through the light and I felt like I was in heaven right there in John’s car. We were cruising at a speed of 25 miles per hour while talking about the soundtracks of obscure films when we started talking about John’s notion of chivalry for women. Let’s just say Sir Lancelot would be proud.
Evan Tikka- Evan Tikka may have the most beautiful backhand I have ever seen in my life. Its like a butterfly, soaring through the woods with its brilliant wings flattering with the clarity of an angel and the resonance of a dream. I have no idea what that last sentence meant. Basically, the beauty of his backhand is in its mystery. I don’t know how he does it, but he hits it over hard with perfect placement and accuracy. However, as great as Evan’s backhand is, it’s his mental game that I am most envious of. He’s always calm under pressure, and steady when playing tough opponents. Most of all, he’s always having fun, and that’s something I want to do no matter how stressful the game I am playing is.
The point I am trying to get across is that all of these Vikings were more than just great warriors of battle; they were friends you could count on to give any kind of advice. As people, each one of them had a big heart and contributed as much as they could to help the team. In the long run, that’s what makes a team great; the desire to become better people and help others to become better people as well. This year, the seniors did it, and I’m sure that next year, the seniors will do it too.
Of course, we couldn’t succeed without the help of a great coach so special thanks to a great coach. Or coaches for this matter. Even when Jen and Miss Kellogg were running our heinies off, they were doing it to prepare us to be the best in the league. And that we were. FOOTHILL LEAGUE CHAMPIONS VIKINGS! A great cheer to a great year and a open the door to many more. Because the future is what awaits us, and as glorious as our past may be, that is what matters now. So with a heavy heart I say goodbye to this team which we will never have back, and ask to move forward. With a heavy heart, I leave all that is behind untouched and change what I can, the future. Come on Vikings, let’s build a good future. One ship at a time.
By Ronit Ghosh