As the temperatures cool and autumn descends upon England, the heat is on when it comes to high school sports. And the action on the tennis courts is no exception. Thwack!

At Alconbury High School, the tennis team is the defending Division IV European champions, and coach Ron Behr said he’d like to see his squad make it two in a row this year. He thinks playing a tough regular season will help.

Tennis teams will face schools in their region before playing schools their size in the European tournament later this year in Mannheim, Germany. For Alconbury, that includes Lakenheath, International School of Brussels and SHAPE.

The competition level inevitably rises for the players when they are exposed to bigger schools, like Lakenheath, during the regular season, Behr said.

The key for the Dragons is to not let up on any point, Behr said.

"Continue hustling after every ball," he said. "It’s all about hustle."

Behr said the Dragons must keep repeating the fundamentals in order to win. It’s what tennis is all about.

The team is anchored by returning seniors Ellyn Edwards and J.C. Kluver.

While high school tennis is a team sport, Edwards said she likes the individualized aspects of the game.

"It’s just you," she said. "You’ve got nothing to fall back on. And when you win, it’s all good."

Edwards, who has gone to school at Alconbury since the third grade, said she first picked up tennis while on vacation in the States. "To entertain myself, I’d play tennis," she said.

Kluver said consistency will be key for the Dragons — "not messing around and being focused."

"We’ve definitely got a strong team this year," Edwards said.

Over at Lakenheath, the Lancers tennis squad is led by sophomore Cavin Cohoes and junior Molly Martin, both of whom placed fifth in the Europeans last year.

Success for the Lancers this year will involve emphasis on the fundamentals of the game and hitting the ball correctly, Coach Darryl Brock said. "You don’t want to develop a lot of skills that are incorrect," he said.

There is talent throughout the team this year, he said.

"I believe we’ll have a lot of victories," Brock said. "We have good depth."

Aggressiveness helps win tennis matches, Martin said, as does figuring out opponent’s weaknesses during the game.

Martin, who said she thinks of the song "Shake It" by Metro Station when she gets nervous on the court, said endurance is also essential in the games, which can go for hours.

While physical skills are important to the game, mental toughness and focus are also needed, agreed senior Michelle Sullivan.

"Just thinking of what’s in your court, not what’s around you," she said.

Tennis is unique among some other high school sports in that the kids can take it with them after they leave the high school halls, Behr said.

"It’s a lifelong sport," he said. "For them to continue to play is my goal."