"I don't know that the bug to become more skilled has bitten Jackson, but he sure likes hitting the ball around, said Bryan Engle, whose 7-year-old son Jackson took part in QuickStart matches Sunday at Ephesus Elementary School. "That's the first step, right? Interest."

"I like that we get to run, and lose or win, we get to have fun," Caroline Bradford, age 9, said.

The QuickStart Junior Team Tennis League is sponsored jointly by the Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation Department and the Durham Orange Community Tennis Association. It's turning out to be just what the DOCTA ordered in terms of a cathartic release, a dose of racquet skills, and friendly, age-appropriate competition.

Promoted across the country by the U.S. Tennis Association, junior team tennis is now courting youths through a spring schedule of organized play, with emphasis placed on the fun, fitness and social benefits of tennis.

Teams consist of players of similar age and ability, matched against teams at comparable levels.

"Changes in court size, net height, racquet length, ball and scoring helps kids develop better technical and tactical skills," the USTA web site states. "Emphasis is on etiquette and sportsmanship, not winning."

The right dimensions

While DOCTA has staged popular QuickStart clinics over the past two years, the league first began match play only two weeks ago, noted Patti Fox, DOCTA Community Tennis Coordinator and QuickStart Program Coordinator. She's also the head tennis coach at Carrboro High School.

"We've also done a lot in the schools over the past couple years with physical education teachers and after-school directors about how to teach tennis," Fox said. "We've focused on the QuickStart approach. We've received great feedback on that; this (league play) is the next step, and we've gotten a tremendous response."

"We'd never really focused on the 10-and-under kids," Fox added. "QuickStart falls under the umbrella of junior team tennis, but, in terms of tennis, it's what Tee-ball is to baseball."

Fox said the early exposure to tennis follows the model for success introduced in Europe.

"There are a lot of pros in other countries," she explained, "and I think USTA has finally decided that the way to start folks off right with dimensions tailored to age and size."

QuickStart Rules

Established in 1998, DOCTA is a non-profit organization that promotes tennis in Durham and Orange counties. One of the group's goals is to help children develop and learn the skill of tennis and to provide opportunities for them to move from junior play to college or professional participation.

QuickStart uses portable nets help shrink the court to kids' sizes and employs smaller racquets that are appropriate for young juniors. Foam and low-compression balls are easier target and hit.

Scoring is also simplified in QuickStart, with only seven points in a game for the younger bracket. Matches are best-of-three games, unlike the standard six-game minimum set. The longest QuickStart match will last approximately 20 minutes.

Older players play the best-of-three sets; the first to win four games wins a set.

Seawell Smashers

Fox has been more than pleased with the success of the league in its debut season.

"There are eight teams among 6-to-8-year-olds and six 9-10 teams," she said. "We are using the Ephesus Elementary School courts as their home site." Participants also practice once a week on the courts at local clubs or on those at Hargraves Center.

"By partnering with Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation, we're able to use park and recreation facilities as home sites," Fox explained. "Bernard Leach (Athletics Supervisor) at Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation has been extremely generous. It's truly been a partnership."

Fox said it was particularly rewarding to see participation flowing out of some local schools rather than solely through clubs.

"A lot of leagues use only private clubs," she said. "We have 104 participants, and about half signed up through the schools. I love seeing kids playing that might not otherwise have had the opportunity to play, like those that just signing up at a school. We even formed a team from Seawell Elementary School: the Seawell Smashers."

"Many of these kids have never played," she added, "so it's neat to see them sign up not being affiliated with a club. The Farm, Tennis Club, Country Club and Southern Village also have teams, and I am also glad they jumped on board for our maiden voyage. The league's a work in progress, but kids have smiles on faces overall."

The local league mimics similarly successful ventures across North Carolina.

"In Charlotte, they probably have 1,500 junior team players," Fox said, "and they're pretty much the model for this."

'When do we play?'

Parents and players on hand for this past Sunday's round of league play at Ephesus Elementary courts had high praise for the program as well.

"My son Will (Heilig, 7) loves it," said Doug Heilig, who was on hand alongside his younger son, Blake, 5, another budding enthusiast. "We're just getting started with this, though."

"I think it's just cool to hit the ball back and forth," Will Heilig said.

"We heard about this through (Southern Village Coach) Derek Boone," said Chandra Knott, mother of Taylor Ann Knott, 6.

"Taylor Ann's enjoying it," the elder Knott said. "She believes she actually is playing tennis now. At lessons they never do this, and she asks, 'When do we get to play the games?'"

Taylor Ann Knott said she was already learning more, week by week.

"The first tournament I lost," she said, "because I didn't really know how to serve the foam balls."

Into it

Parental support and involvement was also cited as being a key to the successful development of junior tennis, and more and more coaches are buying into the program as well.

"I'd been at the Chapel Hill Country Club for 22 years, and I wasn't really wanting to start this up because I had my own system of doing things," Chapel Hill Country Club Tennis Director Lindsay Benton said. "Now we're really excited about it, though."

"We've really had a great turnout for this," Southern Village tennis pro Derek Boone said Sunday. "We've got nine kids out today, and I think we have 11 kids total."

"They get to keep score and play a little bit," he added. "It's a little bit tougher on a day like today when it's so windy with the light, foam balls. But it's great, because you get to see so many kids playing."

Taylor Ann Knott's interests were actually drawing her parents into the game.

"I was a swimmer, and I never had time for anything else but swimming," Chandra Knott said. "Taylor Ann's actually getting us into it."

Coming up

Fox said she hoped to build on the spring's success.

"This season ends May 23, and people are already asking if we're going to do this again in the fall," she said. "I know Chapel Hill parks and recreation is looking at offering a session of QuickStart lessons in June, and we're hoping to offer more of those."

"We'll evaluate this season," Fox said, "and we'll see if it's something we can offer again in the fall."

Also, all teams will be invited to participate in the NC-USTA Junior Team Tennis State Championships July 16-18 in Cary.

In the meantime, QuickStart is getting kids into the swing of tennis at an early age.

"I'm having fun, and I like hitting the ball," Taylor Ann Knott said. "I like hitting the ball hard."

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