ParentingAces - The Junior Tennis and College Tennis Podcast

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 39 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, Lisa chats with former top junior and long-time coach and coach-educator, Kyle LaCroix.

We've kind of followed a theme in our most recent episodes, one in which we've examined the state of junior tennis coaching and how to make it a better experience for the coaches, players, and parents. The hope is that, through these conversations, we can get the ball rolling to improve coach education, parent education, and the overall experience of families and professionals involved in our sport.

Here's a little bit more about Kyle and why he's a great guest to tackle this subject:

Kyle LaCroix has a proven track record of service and success in the racquet sports industry. A RSPA (Racquet Sports Professionals Association  , Formerly USPTA) Master Professional, and a decorated industry veteran that is also certified by RSPA Padel, Professional Tennis Registry (PTR), Registro Profesional de Tenis (RPT), Global Professional Tennis Coaches Association (GPTCA) and the United States Center For Coaching Excellence (USCCE). Kyle has spent the past 25+ years as one of the foremost experts and leaders in coach development. Having worked with players of all levels, across numerous racquet sports as well as coaches, Kylebrings with him a wealth of knowledge through work at clubs and academies. Kyle has served the racquet sportsindustry in a multitude of capacities including being a RSPA Florida Division Tester/Coach Developer for 17  years and a member of the RSPA National College Curriculum Committee, The RSPA National Membership Committee, The RSPA Strategic Planning Committee as well as other board appointments. Kyle has tested, certified and mentored over 1700 individual tennis coaches from around the world. 

 In 2014, Kyle became the youngest recipient of the RSPA National Tester/Coach Developer of The Year Award.  

Kyle is The Chief Education Officer of SETS. He holds a B.S. Degree from Ferris State University in Professional Tennis Management. A B.S. Degree in Marketing as well as an MBA from The University of Michigan. He also has an M.Ed. from Stanford University.

To get in touch with Kyle, you can email him at [email protected]. You can also follow him on Twitter @SETS_Consulting and Instagram @sets_consulting.

For our podcast with Kyle's wife, Lisa, go to https://parentingaces.com/podcasts/love-serving-autism-ft-lisa-pugliese-lacroix/.

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 38 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, Lisa is joined by Sam Parfitt, former top junior and collegiate player and the founder/CEO of The True Athlete Project (TAP).

TAP has pioneered a holistic mindfulness-based approach that unleashes sport's potential to change lives across diverse contexts. They believe sport can play a powerful role in building a happier, healthier, more compassionate world. But too often, sport fails to live up to its potential, driven by a win-at-all-costs culture that dehumanizes people and leads to dropout, burnout, bullying, and disastrous mental health outcomes. TAP wants sport to be joyful and freeing, and to bring people together. They have become leaders in how to change the culture of sport, working with national and international governing bodies, community sports centers, schools, colleges, coaches, athletes, referees, and parents.

Sam Parfitt holds an MSc in Sport Policy, Management and International Development from the University of Edinburgh, where he then became an associate tutor. His dissertation focused on the role of sport coaches as social change-makers. He is a certified mindfulness teacher and a USPTA professional tennis coach with experience coaching all ages and standards - from total beginners to internationally-ranked juniors.
​While Sam suffered with poor health during his time in the US, Sam endeavored to use his experiences in sport - both positive and negative - to help others. His academic work centered around sport and identity, and he became intimately involved in establishing projects which used sport as an agent for social change. He worked extensively within the context of sport for at-risk Hispanic youths and won multiple awards for his efforts, including the 2012 UTC and City of Chattanooga public service award and the Coleman Lew & Associates Leadership Award.
After working within an NCAA Division I athletics department, he was appointed director of athletics at Saint Peter's School - an independent K through 5th school in Chattanooga, Tennessee. There, he had the chance to create his own athletics program around a set of ideals that would help the children enjoy a positive start to their sporting careers. The program included a novel parkour program, sports poetry, mindfulness, and brought the school into the news for his inclusive and innovative approach to the holistic training of young athletes.
During his time at St.Peter's School, Sam was also an NCAA Division I women's tennis coach, helping to take the Mocs to their best record for over twenty years.
Sam has also worked with the Mastercard Scholars Foundation and advises several NGOs. He has delivered mindfulness to Olympians and Paralympians across over thirty sports.

If you're interested in learning more about The True Athlete Project, visit their website at https://www.thetrueathleteproject.org. You can reach Sam directly via email at [email protected].

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 37 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, we hear from Quinn Borchard, a former top junior, college, and professional player who is now coaching his own two sons through the juniors.

Parenting a child who aspires to be the best at their pursuit - whether that's in academics, the arts, or in sports - is challenging, to say the least. Parenting that child while also acting as his primary coach adds a whole new level of challenge! Quinn Borchard has taken on the challenge with both of his young sons and is doing so very successfully.

In this podcast, Quinn goes into detail about his approach to both parenting and coaching his children and shares their weekly schedule and how he and his wife work together to ensure family harmony.

Quinn is happy to chat with anyone looking for guidance on their own child's tennis journey. You can reach out to him through the ParentingAces Facebook Group or via email at [email protected].

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 36 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, Lisa chats with WTA tour coach and former USTA National Coach, Michael Joyce, and high-performance junior coach, Todd Widom about what true high-performance coaching looks like and what it takes to make it to the top levels of our sport.

Michael was a top junior player, winning Kalamazoo in the Boys 18s, who went on to a successful professional tennis career before turning his sites to coaching. Since entering the coaching arena at age 22, he has worked with Maria Sharapova, Jessica Pegula, and Ashlyn Krueger, among others. He has also worked with numerous junior players who had their sites on becoming pro players.

Todd Widom runs a successful tennis program in Florida with a focus on preparing his players for college tennis and beyond. Todd also had an amazing junior and college tennis career before embarking on the pro tour. He brings those experiences to his work as a coach today.

Both of these men grew up with strict junior coaches - Robert Lansdorp and Pierre Arnold - who taught them the value of hard work, commitment, and patience. Tennis development is a long process where the focus needs to be on growth over results and rankings.

To contact Michael, you can email him at [email protected] or call/text him at 407-421-4341.

To contact Todd, you can email him at [email protected]. You can also follow him on Instagram at https://instagram.com/toddwidom_tennis.

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 35 of the ParentingAces Podcast! This is the final in our 3-part series of interviews recorded at the 2025 US Open Junior Championships, and it’s another long one, this time featuring the Tennis Parents!

Lisa chats with the parents of Wimbledon Junior Boys Singles Finalist Ronit Karki, Kanchan Joshi; US Open Junior Boys Singles Quarterfinalist Andy Johnson, Cindy Johnson; US Open Junior Boys Doubles Champion Keaton Hance, Courtney Hance; and US Open Junior Boys Doubles Champion Jack Kennedy, Bryan Kennedy.

Please keep in mind these juniors are playing at the highest level of our sport, and their journey may look very different from the one your family is on. That said, all four parents offer some great nuggets of wisdom and advice!

For the draws of each US Open Junior event:

Girls Singles: ⁠⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-girls-singles.html⁠⁠

Girls Doubles: ⁠⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-girls-doubles.html⁠⁠

Boys Singles: ⁠⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-boys-singles.html⁠⁠

Boys Doubles: ⁠⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-boys-doubles.html⁠

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 34 of the ParentingAces Podcast! This is the second in a 3-part series of interviews recorded at the 2025 US Open Junior Championships, and it's a long one!

In this installment, Lisa talks with the Boys and Girls Finalists and Champions in both singles and doubles. You will hear from Boys Doubles Finalists, Ben Willwerth and Noah Johnston of the US; Boys Singles Finalist Alexander Vasilev of Bulgaria; Girls Singles Finalist Lea Nilsson of Sweden; Boys Doubles Champions Keaton Hance and Jack Kennedy of the US; Boys Singles Champion Ivan Ivanov of Bulgaria; and Girls Singles Champion and Girls Doubles Finalists Jelene Vandromme of Belgium.

The interviews were conducted in the Media Garden outside the US Open Media Center. Lisa was joined by Colette Lewis of ZooTennis.com and Michael Lewis, who both cover junior tennis worldwide.

After the singles finals were played, the Boys and Girls champions were both invited into Room 1 inside the Media Center for their interviews. You can find that footage, courtesy of the US Open, here and here.

For the draws of each US Open Junior event:

Girls Singles: ⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-girls-singles.html⁠

Girls Doubles: ⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-girls-doubles.html⁠

Boys Singles: ⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-boys-singles.html⁠

Boys Doubles: ⁠https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-boys-doubles.html

In the next installment, you’ll hear from some of the parents about their journeys alongside their talented children.

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 33 of the ParentingAces Podcast! This is the first in a 3-part series of interviews recorded at the 2025 US Open Junior Championships. In this installment, Lisa talks with American junior players Ronit Karki from New Jersey, Thea Frodin from Southern California, Andrew Johnson from Southern California, and Kristina Penickova from Northern California.

The audio-only (per my media credential rules) interviews were conducted in the Media Garden at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, so please pardon the ambient sounds you may hear in the background!

These juniors all competed in both the singles and doubles events in New York alongside the pros. They each took a different path to this tournament which should offer some insights into how a junior player can go from playing their local events to playing on the biggest stages around the world.

For the draws of each US Open Junior event:

Girls Singles: https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-girls-singles.html

Girls Doubles: https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-girls-doubles.html

Boys Singles: https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-boys-singles.html

Boys Doubles: https://www.usopen.org/en_US/draws/junior-boys-doubles.html

In the next installment, you'll hear from additional junior players who all reached the Finals in their respective events. After that, you'll hear from some of the parents about their journeys alongside their talented children.

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 32 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week’s episode, Coach Jack Newman of the Austin Tennis Academy is back to dig deeper into his recent article (click here to read) on taking one of his alternate-listed junior players to this year's Level 1 in Kalamazoo.

Duey Evans shared Jack's article in our Facebook Group and I was very interested to read all the comments. They definitely covered a wide range of opinions, so I wanted to give Jack a platform to talk about the WHY behind his actions. My hope is that this episode will open the minds of coaches, players, and parents to alternative ways of developing players to their full potential. As we all know, there are so many paths through Junior Tennis, and I believe it's helpful to know your options!

Jack and I also chat about the upcoming Little Mo Nationals which will once again be hosted by Austin Tennis Academy. To learn more about one of my favorite junior tournament series, visit the Little Mo website at https://mcbtennis.org/.

For those interested in contacting Jack and/or Austin Tennis Academy, visit their website at https://austintennisacademy.com/. You can reach Jack via email at [email protected].

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 31 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week’s episode, Dr. Mark Kovacs is back to dive deeper into a recent social media post about the decreased fitness levels he's seeing in junior tennis players and what we can do to help our players get fit and stay injury-free.

In case you're unsure as to why you should pay attention to what Mark has to say, he is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves the iTPA membership as its Executive Director. He formally directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for USTA. He is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine and the ITPA. He has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals including the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Sports Medicine, Sports Health, International Journal of Sport Physiology and Performance, Strength & Conditioning Journal, Journal of Sports Science and Medicine among many others. He has presented workshops and keynote addresses on four continents and well over 100 presentations. Along with his academic and scientific background Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. He was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach. This man has the bona fides!

You'll hear Mark discuss the Gatorade Sweat Patch as an easy tool to measure sweat level. You can get more information and order them through the Gatorade website at https://www.gatorade.com/equipment/gx-sweat-patch/gx-sweat-patch-00052000048520.

Mark and I also discuss his recent article on combating jet lag which you can find here: Click Here

To reach out to Mark directly, email him at [email protected]. You can also follow him on Instagram at https://instagram.com/drmarkkovacs. To find our podcast on periodization, go to https://parentingaces.com/podcasts/what-is-periodization-how-do-we-use-it-with-dr-mark-kovacs/.

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone

Welcome to Season 14 Episode 30 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, Coach Hannah Keeling of Georgia Gwinnett College - the winningest college tennis program in the NAIA - joins us to discuss why junior players and their families should take a closer look at this division.

Coach Keeling is a former NCAA Division II top-20 singles tennis player and earned four first-team all-conference honors in singles and doubles at Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia from 2012-15. She helped the team reach a No. 4 national ranking during the 2012-13 season. Hannah earned a bachelor’s degree in health and fitness management from Clayton State in 2015.

Hannah has been director of the Stars of the Future program at Ginepri Performance Tennis located at Olde Towne Athletic Club in Marietta, Georgia, where she worked with homeschool and high-performance youth players to develop them for playing at the collegiate and professional levels. In this role, Keeling worked alongside Robbie Ginepri, a former No. 15 ranked player among the ATP Tour, and Jason Parker, a WTA/ATP coach.

As a player, Keeling was the top-ranked national junior tennis player in the United Kingdom while playing for Hampshire, England. She supplemented her American collegiate career by spending several years playing in the women’s French national circuit.

Hannah shares with us what she looks for in recruits and what she hopes prospective student athletes will ask her during their recruiting process. She also shares her experience coaching the Intennse League over the summer and what she is bringing back to her team from that experience.

For more information on Georgia Gwinnett College or NAIA college tennis in general, feel free to reach out to Hannah directly at [email protected]. She has a wealth of information and experience to share with families considering the NAIA route. You can also follow her on Instagram at fitcourtlife.

As always, I am available for one-to-one consults to work with you as you find your way through the college recruiting process. You can purchase and book online through our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://parentingaces.com/shop/category/consult-with-lisa-stone/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your fellow tennis players, parents, and coaches. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or via your favorite podcast app. Please be sure to check out our logo’d merch as well as our a la carte personal consultations in our ⁠⁠online shop⁠⁠.

CREDITS

Intro & Outro Music: Morgan Stone aka STØNE

Audio & Video Editing: Lisa Stone