Imagine standing 10 feet behind the baseline and trying to return a 195 kilometre-an-hour serve from Jarryd Seib.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
That's what the region's high school tennis stars were staring down the barrel of ahead of Wagga Wagga's 2021 Western Region Boys tournament as Seib was selected to represent Orange High.
Due to COVID-19, the tournament was obviously unable to go ahead but Seib along with OHS mates Zaley Attwater and Stephanie Gersbach were all set to do Hornets proud at the high-level event.
For Seib, a berth in this competition is something he's craved for several years now as he hasn't swung a racket at the tournament since a run around at Inverell in 2018.
And while this year marks the last season of the 17-year-old's eligibility, he was still stoked to be on the merit team.
"It's pretty good to get acknowledged for it," he said.
"I couldn't play last year because I had stress fractures in my back and obviously last year was cancelled."
Seib was somewhat of a Western prodigy as a youngster, but has since dialed back his training regime as both cricket and studies have taken precedent.
"I used to play a lot and I trained 3-4 times a week in the early stages of high school," he said.
"I was ranked number one around here at stage."
The right hander likes to lean on an explosive style as he backs his serve and ability to win points from the baseline.
Growing up, he tried to take after a couple of familiar tennis stars.
"I've always idolised [Roger] Federer," he said.
"And I'm a bit of a Lleyton Hewitt fan as well. I used to watch him in the Aussie Open."
The fast bowler is soon set to launch into another summer of Bathurst Orange Inter District Cricket with Orange City, but once he's finished his studies, wants to keep his options open.
"I was going to go to university for high school teaching, but in the current times I might look at a trade instead," he said.
"Or maybe a gap year. I'll see what happens."
Fortunately for other OHS athletes like Gersbach, she'll have many more chances to represent the Hornets as she's just kicked off her high school career.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.centralwesterndaily.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Catch up on our news headlines at Google News
HAVE YOUR SAY
- Send us a letter to the editor using the form below ...