BENTONVILLE — The road to the Nestle Summer Junior Open State Championships is a long one for Davis Owen, but his previous experience did let him know what to expect.
The same can’t be said for Zachary Barnes and Lincoln Metz. Their road was even longer and eventually proved to be much more difficult.
Those three players traveled from out of state to participate in this weekend’s tournament, and they make up the top three seeds in the boys 18s singles division. Owen is from Tunica, Miss., while Barnes is a native of Trussville, Ala., and Metz hails from Suwanee, Ga.
AT A GLANCE
Nestle’ Summer Junior Open State Championships
WHEN: Through Sunday
WHERE: Memorial Park, Bentonville, and Pinnacle Country Club, Rogers
NOTABLE: The tournament consists of boys and girls ages 10-18, with singles and doubles division. … Players represent nine states in the event, which is sanctioned by the United States Tennis Association. … Parking for today’s matches will be moved to the Memorial Park baseball fields because of the Shark Triathlon.
“This tournament brings a lot of different people from a lot of different places,” Barnes said. “I just wanted to come and be a part of it and see what Arkansas was all about.”
Owen returned to the tournament after he enjoyed some success last year, despite playing in a higher age group. He played in the boys 18 division despite being only 16 and finished third in singles and was one-half of the winning doubles team.
His success continued Friday with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Michael Yawn of Rogers and moved him into this morning quarterfinal match.
“I remembered enjoying this tournament a lot,” Owen said. “My cousin also goes to Arkansas, so we’re kind of visiting him too.”
The tournament also gives Owen, a student at Memphis University School, a chance to brush up on his tennis skills and pick up some United States Tennis Association points. He suffered a stress fracture in his back in January, and he had to sit out a good part of the year because of it.
The injury sidelined him for two months, then he sat out another month when his back continued to bother him. He’s only played in a couple of tournaments since then.
“I’m just playing as many tournaments as I can before school starts,” he said. “I wouldn’t say I’m rusty, but while I’ve been coming back I’ve noticed my footwork and movement. I’m not doing as well as I should.”
Meanwhile, the tournament served as a double purpose for Metz. He not only received a chance to play tennis, but it also gave him the opportunity to see his father Walt, who took a just with Walmart and just moved into the area two weeks ago.
The tennis part, however, didn’t exactly go the younger Metz’s way. He suffered a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 loss to Grady McCain of Fort Smith and fell into the consolation round.
“I wanted to play in a high-level tournament, and this is a high-level tournament,” the younger Metz said. “I just want to play my best and have a lot of confidence. I think if you have a lot of confidence, you can win a lot of matches.”
Barnes admitted he entered the tournament knowing nothing about it or the people he might face. He still drew the third seed, but he suffered a 6-2, 6-2 loss to Kyle Kennedy of Texarkana, Texas, and quickly fell into the consolation round.
“This is my first time into Arkansas,” he said before the match. “But I’ll give it my all and see what happens. I need to work on everything about my game, and hopefully I’ll get better every day.”