{"id":390890,"date":"2026-07-29T18:12:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T18:12:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/390890\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T18:12:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T18:12:10","slug":"central-texas-tennis-stars-bring-home-national-doubles-title","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/390890\/","title":{"rendered":"Central Texas tennis stars bring home national doubles title"},"content":{"rendered":"

Months of training, years of friendship and one unforgettable championship run all came together for two Central Texas tennis players who are now national champions!<\/p>\n

Alexander Vriedt and William McEwan joined Sierra Waggoner on We Are Austin after capturing the doubles title at the United States Tennis Association National Clay Court Championships,<\/a> earning one of the sport’s most prestigious honors: a USTA Gold Ball.<\/p>\n

\"Alexander<\/p>\n

Alexander Vriedt and William McEwan joined Sierra Waggoner on We Are Austin after capturing the doubles title at the United States Tennis Association National Clay Court Championships, earning one of the sport’s most prestigious honors: a USTA Gold Ball.<\/p>\n

For Alexander, the victory represented years of dedication and perseverance.<\/p>\n

“It’s an amazing experience. I’ve been playing Level 1s since the 14s, and I’ve never come this far. It feels great, and I’m really honored to win a gold ball with my friend here, William.”<\/p>\n

William agreed that the title was special not only because of the accomplishment itself, but because he was able to experience it alongside one of his closest friends.<\/p>\n

“It was a great experience. It was amazing that we were able to go that far, and it was super special to do it with someone who I’ve known for a long time and one of my good friends.”<\/p>\n

\"{p}Their<\/p>\n

Their success didn’t happen overnight. Both athletes train and attend school at Austin Tennis Academy, where they spend countless hours developing their skills together both on and off the court.<\/p>\n

Winning a national championship takes much more than talent. It requires endurance, focus and the ability to perform under pressure, especially in the summer heat.<\/p>\n

\"Central<\/p>\n

Central Texas tennis stars bring home national doubles title!<\/p>\n

William explained that championship day was one of the toughest tests of the tournament. Before the doubles final even began, he had already competed in a demanding singles match.<\/p>\n

“Championship day I had a singles match in the morning, so I was getting up early and I had to battle it out. I was able to win the morning match, which was a good start to the day, and then we were able to warm up together around 12-ish. We played around one, and it was super hot. It was a long, long match, but it was a battle and we were able to take it down.”<\/p>\n

While William remembers the details of the day, Alexander says the emotions of the moment almost overshadowed everything else.<\/p>\n

“To be honest, I don’t really remember much about it. All I remember is we battled hard, we dealt with adversity, and we kind of just had fun. That was what I was trying to go for, and we ended up winning, which is so great.”<\/p>\n

Their success didn’t happen overnight. Both athletes train and attend school at Austin Tennis Academy, where they spend countless hours developing their skills together both on and off the court.<\/p>\n

Alexander says that daily routine has played a major role in building the chemistry that ultimately helped them win a national title.<\/p>\n

\"{p}"It<\/p>\n

“It was a great experience. It was amazing that we were able to go that far, and it was super special to do it with someone who I’ve known for a long time and one of my good friends.”<\/p>\n

“Austin Tennis Academy<\/a> has been great. We go to school there as well, and the flexibility it gives us to train every day and make us really focus on tennis has been huge. I get to spend my day with William, and our chemistry has just grown. It’s allowed us to become great doubles players.”<\/p>\n

That chemistry proved to be one of their biggest strengths throughout the tournament. In doubles tennis, communication and trust are just as important as powerful serves and quick reflexes.<\/p>\n

For William, keeping the atmosphere light made all the difference.<\/p>\n

“The most important part is that you’ve got to have fun. You’ve got to be able to go out there and have fun with your teammate and not really care so much about the outcome. That will come. That’s one thing me and Alexander did really well. We were able to just go out there, enjoy the moment and have fun playing against all these different people from across the country.”<\/p>\n

The pair also credits Central Texas for preparing them for one of the biggest challenges of the tournament: the weather.<\/p>\n

Training through Austin’s relentless summer heat helped give them an edge when they arrived in Florida, where temperatures and long matches pushed every competitor to their limits.<\/p>\n

“It’s been great. Training in the heat really prepared us for playing in Florida,” William said. “A lot of people from the northern states were dropping out, so training in this kind of weather really prepares you for those long battles.”<\/p>\n

Although the championship is now behind them, both players have their sights set on continuing to improve while encouraging more young athletes to discover the sport that has shaped so much of their lives.<\/p>\n

William hopes new players remember that enjoying the game is just as important as winning.<\/p>\n

\"{p}Although<\/p>\n

Although the championship is now behind them, both players have their sights set on continuing to improve while encouraging more young athletes to discover the sport that has shaped so much of their lives.<\/p>\n

“The biggest thing you’ve got to do is enjoy it. Go out there and have fun. That’ll make the process more enjoyable, and it’ll help you stay motivated to keep playing, even if it’s a super hot day.”<\/p>\n

Alexander believes tennis becomes even more rewarding when it’s shared with others.<\/p>\n

“Bring friends over and play. I think doubles is such a great part of the game because you gain tons of friends and connections with your teammate and partner. I think it’s great.”<\/p>\n

Their championship may have earned them a Gold Ball, but Alexander Vriedt and William McEwan say the friendships they’ve built, the lessons they’ve learned and the joy they’ve found in competing together are just as meaningful as the trophy itself.<\/p>\n

\""Austin<\/p>\n

“Austin Tennis Academy has been great. We go to school there as well, and the flexibility it gives us to train every day and make us really focus on tennis has been huge. I get to spend my day with William, and our chemistry has just grown. It’s allowed us to become great doubles players.”<\/p>\n

\"Alexander<\/p>\n

Alexander Vriedt and William McEwan joined Sierra Waggoner on We Are Austin after capturing the doubles title at the United States Tennis Association National Clay Court Championships, earning one of the sport’s most prestigious honors: a USTA Gold Ball.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Months of training, years of friendship and one unforgettable championship run all came together for two Central Texas…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":390891,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[132,134,133],"class_list":["post-390890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-austin","tag-austin","tag-austin-headlines","tag-austin-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=390890"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390890\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/390891"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=390890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=390890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=390890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}