Senior Jaxson Thoresen is Liberty’s varsity football quarterback. Senior Thomas Manson is our top cross country runner. Junior Calvin Cakarnis is our best golfer. Freshman Alex Karnes is our number one tennis player?

Yes, a freshman is number one.

This is a fairly unusual scenario in high school sports, but Karnes has the experience.  

“I have played tennis since I was six, and now that I practice three times a week after high school I feel very confident in my abilities,” Karnes said.

Karnes has earned himself the spot as Liberty’s Boys Varsity Tennis number one rank. This has not only pushed him to become a better player, but he has also learned great team building skills. 

“Alex pushes other players to play better and this quality makes him a wonderful asset to this team,” Boys’ Varsity Tennis Coach Carola Dopps said.

Karnes went undefeated in tryouts, winning 7 games and losing none. Even though Karnes beat his future varsity teammates, he still feels comfortable in a new environment. 

“The upperclassmen on the team have all been very welcoming to me,” Karnes said.

He has gone on to play against other schools and met challenging opponents. Karnes has only won one game since the season started, but even then, he is still able to pick himself up to try again. 

“It’s weird. Some of the other schools also have very good freshmen on varsity. That helps push me to be better when I see them,” Karnes said. “I want to get better and I want to beat the people that I lost to before.”

His fellow teammate and captain of the team Caleb Hu enjoys having Karnes on the team. Hu has been able to spend time with Karnes through practices, games, and thinks it’s exciting to see him play. 

“I think what makes him special is that he knows how to throw his weight around. He uses his small size and speed to make up for the lack of frame,” Hu said.