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Observer-Reporter Athlete of the Week

3 min read
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Name: Connor Bruce

School: Peters Township

Sport: Tennis

Class: Freshman

Bruce’s week: Bruce avenged an earlier loss to Robby Shymanski of Fox Chapel, defeating the defending WPIAL Class AAA tennis champion, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (8-6), by scoring the final five points in the tiebreaker.

Bruce opened the tournament at The Club Sport and Health in Monroeville with a 10-2 win over David Missy of Allderdice and followed it with a 10-7 win over Richard Hoffman of North Allegheny. A 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 victory over Marcus Mitchell put Bruce in the finals.

Shemansky, a 2016 PIAA runner-up, opened a 6-3 lead during the tiebreaker and came within inches on two returners of hitting winners and winning the title.

“I fought off three match points,” said Bruce. “These matches are really stressful when they are close. This was the second time I played him. He beat me in the team tournament finals.”

As District 7 champion, Bruce will have a good seed in the PIAA Individual Tournament, which will be held May 26-27 at the Hershey Racquet Club. Bruce enters the tournament ranked fourth in the state and could have a rematch with Shymanski, who also qualified.

“After losing to him in the team tournament, I was more hungry,” Bruce said. “He’s a great player. He beat me pretty well there that first time but I came in focused. I wanted to do the best I could.”

A great coach: Bruce started hitting tennis balls at age 3. His teacher throughout his career also is his mother, Marcie, who won a PIAA doubles title while at Mt. Lebanon. Marcie played Division I tennis at the College of Charleston and later coached the Upper St. Clair girls’ teams to numerous championships.

“It’s easy, but it’s difficult having her coach me,” said Bruce. “She is always with me. … She’s been there through the good times and the hard times. She’s definitely the best.”

Bruce’s father, Allan, is an amateur-best 5.0 tennis player. Marcie is a teaching pro with the Upper St. Clair Tennis Development Program and works with Connor daily.

Bruce’s brother, Hunter, was a tennis player but branched off to golf, where he competes for Peters Township.

Connor’s goals are to continue to play on the varsity level and the USTA junior level before he steps up in a Division I college program.

“I want to keep improving,” Bruce said. “Being a professional is a dream of mine. I’ll take it one step at a time, though, and see where tennis takes me.”

Compiled by Joe Tuscano

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