The Eagle tennis team has an overall record 15-2 so far in their fall team season. With a new coach motivating them to success, their winning streak is expected to only increase.

Tennis coach John Gonzales started playing tennis in the fourth grade and hasn’t stopped since.

“I came for an opportunity to be part of a tradition rich tennis program,” Gonzales said.  “Canyon has always been successful in tennis, and I look forward to be part of this success and to continue this success.”

Gonzales came from Portales, New Mexico where tennis is a popular sport.

 “We always had a strong boys program,” Gonzales said. “Whenever I was a kid I always wanted to play varsity. We were very fortunate in New Mexico that as an eighth grader we could play varsity tennis, so a lot of us eighth graders had to the opportunity to play varsity.”

Coach Gonzales moved to Canyon 20 years ago.

“I’ve been married for 18 years, and we have a daughter who is 7 years old,” Gonzales said.   “My wife is a counselor in Amarillo, and my daughter is still attending school in Amarillo as well.”

Coach Gonzales also enjoys watching professional tennis.

“My favorite tennis players are Roger Federer and Pete Sampras,” Gonzales said.

 Gonzales said he is proud of how well his players have been doing.

 “I’m very happy to be here,” Gonzales said.  “The kids have worked extremely hard and they work hard every day in practice and they want to get better.  Every time we go out and compete, they compete hard.  They hustle for every single ball and they have just been doing an outstanding job and I’m proud to be their coach.”