Red and Orange Ball Tournament

Over the course of the weekend, Somerset College had a dozen competitors compete in the Red Ball Tennis Tournament hosted at Somerset College, and the Orange Ball Tournament at Queens Park. This was the first time we were given the privilege of hosting an official tournament.

The Red Ball Tournament was held 28 April and consisted of two Under 8 Round Robin groups for both girls and boys, with eight entries in the girls draw and 18 in the boys. Somerset had five competitors in the Tournament, producing some amazing outcomes. In the boys draw, Patrick Deacon came fourth, Samuel Carson finished seventh, Liam Borin finished eighth, Marcello Lamont came 12th and Josh Rosentreter came 17th. This is a remarkable achievement and some fantastic results for these boys, as only the best Under 8’s on the Gold Coast were selected to compete in the Tournament.

Although we got off to a rocky start, with the courts being completely drenched in rain due to poor weather conditions, supervisors and members of staff were quick to dry the courts and ready just in time for play to commence. The sausage sizzle provided was a great success, selling out of sausages and bread with only a few cans of soft drink to spare. Overall, the Red Ball Tournament was a great success, and many parents commented on how well mannered and efficient the supervisors and members of staff were on the day.

Following these great results, we had an impressive finish at the Orange Ball Tournament, where we had seven students competing. This tournament had two Under 10 draws for both the girls and boys. In the boys' draw, we had Kona Baldock, Fynn Busuttin, Kaii Norman and Liam O’Nuallain all making it to the semi-finals; resulting in a Somerset College semi-final with Fynn beating Kaii 4 to 1 in the final. This is not only an amazing achievement for the boys, but also for the College. We also had William Pluss who finished in sixth place, narrowly losing in the fifth/sixth play offs in a match tie-break. Sasha Hanford came 12th, alongside this Mia Richards was our only girl competitor in the girls' draw, finishing fifth out of 12 people; once again another amazing result.

The supervisors consisted of Lachlan Yarwood, Anthony Zhang, Yukimaro Ii, Ross Burlison, Joshua Hamilon, Noah Jay, Chad Brodbeck and Marcus Ibsen. These individuals are all part or have been part of the Somerset Tennis community and were a fantastic help. We also had some assistance from individuals from Year 6, who were Momoe Gondo, Kugar Ho, Lucas Ho, Molly Green, Cameron Hsieh; all were an amazing help during the sausage sizzle and cleaning up the facility. Doing this, they were able to gain six-hours of community and service.

Overall, both these tournaments were a great success for both the players and the College. The Red Ball Tournament hosted at Somerset has helped Somerset Tennis gain a fantastic reputation with a well-run event and students' impressive outcomes, alongside the results of the Orange Ball Tournament.