Frosty Hollow Freeze at Mill Creek: June 5th
On a Sunday afternoon, the Frosty Hollow Freeze headed on the road to Feasterville, Pennsylvania to continue their road trip to take on Mill Creek. It was Mill Creek who won in these teams meeting before, so the Freeze were wanting revenge on them. A hazy and very humid afternoon had the players sweating in this affair even before the ball got rolling. Hard back and forth action with both teams pushing hard made this game a hot ticket, which possibly sold like hot cakes. With a light drizzle before the game, the Mill Creek home stadium courts were a dark green clay with a muddy accent. The courts are maintained nicely but did make for some tricky bounces during game play. When everything was finished on this soggy afternoon, the Freeze defeated Mill Creek for a 4-1 victory. The Freeze players walked on the courts with a game plan and walked off succeeding with the green clay on their white uniforms.
Before the game started, the Freeze players talked strategy and warmed up together. The Lineup was submitted outside of the Country Club for today's game. The Singles positions were led by Ian Blackman and Carlos Araujo. The Doubles positions were led by Dave Kniaz and John Sisti, Ashish Patel and Eric Ulzinow, and Lance Shaffer and Mark Shaffer. The Frosty Hollow Freeze crowd definitely outdid the home team Mill Creek. The fans were loud for this away game and it gave for a nice atmosphere.
Ian Blackman got things started by winning his court. When talking to the media, Blackman stated, "I hate Har Tru. It's all muddy. Look at my shoes." However, he did get his task done with his muddy shoes. Carlos Araujo had a good match on his court and worked hard for the team. When speaking with the media, Araujo said, "I came, I played, I lost. Bob sent his nephew to do a man's job." He went on to talk about the tennis balls in the match and asked a question to the team. What did the tennis ball say to the other tennis ball? Araujo said, "See you round." The fans cheered!
On a Doubles court, Dave Kniaz and John Sisti were teamed up for a successful day. They won their court and they worked good together. After the match, Sisti said, "Dave carried me the whole game. I looked horrible out there." When Kniaz stepped up to the microphone, he said, "Good match. Good win." This court featured balls struck on good angles by the Freeze, which made it difficult for opponents to get anything going consistently.
Ashish Patel and Eric Ulzinow played a physical match on their court. They hit loud serves and were finishing points at the net. A ball was smacked with such velocity, that it got stuck in the net during game play. The crowd cheered and then laughed when they weren't sure which team won that point. During play, Ulzinow commented to his D partner, "Move fat boy." After the match, Patel spoke with the media and commented, "I look like the Stay Puft Marshmallow." These guys work great together and have a good time joking with each other but also play with a physical hard edge which makes them rough to play against.
With the game close, Lance Shaffer and Mark Shaffer were heading into a third set. This was about the longest match of the USTA season. Before the third set got started, the players needed to refuel. Mark Shaffer used the break to get work done by a trainer on the sideline. With the fans wanting for more action, Lance and Mark stepped back onto the court with their opponents and these players did not displease the crowd. The third set was thrilling with high pace play and it was an exciting ride. An overhead smash by Lance got stuck into the opponents racquet. Lance and Mark won the court and scored for the team. The fans were loud and cheered with pleasure. This was an intense court with players sliding, diving, and doing anything they needed to score. There were many players that walked off this court with some scrapes and dirt on them. A perfect example was Lance Shaffer running hard into the fence when going for a ball and walked away with blood on his knuckles and his uniform. When talking to the media, Lance stated, "It was a fun match and we both were steady." Mark Shaffer stated, "We played a good brand of tennis." The players were soaked after this match was finished.
What's to say after this great day on the tennis courts? The Freeze win and the team and fans are happy. The players all cheered for each other and the crowd was engaged all afternoon. The Freeze are enjoying their road trip as they are now on their first winning streak of the year. After the match, players talked about nice restaurants to dine at which made for some good food chatter. The Freeze made things seem as easy as pie today. The creek was served!