Rigorous offseason workouts improve Ludwig’s game
By Mike Ramczyk
Sports Editor
This past offseason, Burlington junior Jacob Ludwig ramped up his tennis game.
After sneaking into state as a junior as an extra qualifier, the southpaw was determined to leave no doubt he belonged on the state’s grandest stage.
So Ludwig traveled to Illinois for United States Tennis Association tournaments every other week and hit the weight room, working on his legs to reduce cramping and get stronger.
Now, all the hard work has paid off.
Ludwig won his first match at a WIAA Division 1 sectional in New Berlin May 24 to qualify for his second consecutive state tournament, but he wasn’t done.
Ludwig fell in his next match but rebounded to finish in third place.
“I’m growing as a player,” he said Wednesday afternoon. “Last year, I lost at sectionals. I technically qualified for real this year.”
Burlington tennis coach Ken Savaglia said Ludwig finished at an expected spot, but the coach was impressed with Ludwig’s ability to compete throughout the sectional.
Ludwig knocked off Westosha Central’s Cooper Feruzzi, 6-0, 6-1, to start off the sectional before falling to Racine Horlick’s Andre Antresian, 6-4, 6-2, in the next round.
Savaglia said Ludwig took Antresian to 4-4 in the first set but couldn’t hold on.
But Ludwig returned to form in a third-place match against Waukesha South’s Riley Teutschmann.
Ludwig was confident and aggressive and came away with a straight set dominant victory, 6-1, 6-4.
Ludwig said he is usually calm on the court, and his mentality is to focus on himself and not the opponent.
“I just have to play my match and my game,” he said. “I go with what works best for me.”
By the fourth grade, Ludwig was emulating his older sister, who played tennis at Burlington. He played in summer camps held by the community education department and took the game more seriously as he got older.
Just as serious in the classroom, Ludwig said he takes several high-level courses and hopes to attend the University of Madison.
With the rigors of school work and the pressures of being a teenager in today’s world, tennis is Ludwig’s refuge.
“I like it because it’s a stress reliever,” he said. “There’s a lot of homework to keep me busy, but tennis has given me a lot of friends and is a lifelong sport. You can play when you’re 80.”
“I was pretty nervous at state last year,” Ludwig said. “Hopefully, I can win one match. I would be a heavy underdog in the second match.”
WIAA PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
Thursday, June 1: D1 baseball regional final – (8) Union Grove (10-16) at (1) Burlington (18-4), 4:30 p.m.
D1 softball sectional final – (2) Wilmot (19-4) vs. (1) Westosha Central (21-5), 4:30 p.m., Burlington High School
D2 regional soccer – (15) Westosha Central at (2) Burlington, 6:30 p.m.
D1 state tennis – Burlington jr Jacob Ludwig (18-7) vs. Stevens Point, 11:45 a.m., Nielsen Tennis Stadium, UW-Madison
Friday-Saturday: D1-D3 state track, UW-La Crosse, Emily Ustianowski, Leah Joslyn (BUR); Elizabeth Klein (CC)
Monday-Tuesday: D1 state golf, University Ridge, Verona, Justin Meseberg, BUR, Eric Chambers and Connor Brown (UG)
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