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Photo by Bob Pennell Scott Schnugg, shown here at the SOC championships, will attend an academy that produced some big names on today's pro circuits. Academy lures state-hopeful Schnugg By RANDY HAMMERICKSEN Scott Schnugg's life is about to undergo a dramatic change. The 17-year-old North Medford junior, a two-time Southern Oregon Conference tennis champion who is gunning for a state singles title this week, will soon leave home to further his tennis career. Shortly after his farewell performance at the Class 4A state meet today through Saturday at Tualatin Hills Racquet Club in Beaverton, Schnugg will be off to a prestigious academy. The 6-foot-2 power player is bound for the Rick Macci Tennis Academy at Palm Air Resort and Spa in Pompano Beach, Fla., in July. He plans to spend a year at the academy and finish high school at Cardinal Gibbons High of Pompano Beach. That makes Schnugg's final tournament in North Medford colors extra important, he says. Schnugg, the No. 3 seed at state, and SOC singles runner-up Deryk Inn team with the state's top-seeded doubles team of Jon and Chris Endrikat to make North Medford a serious title contender. "I'd like to go out on top and win it," Schnugg says. "And I'd like to see our team win. I think it can happen, if things work out. "If I don't win the state championship, then it will mean I have to work that much harder." That work will come at the academy. "Not every kid gets a chance to go to an academy like this," says Schnugg, adding that his parents, Cathy and Steve Schnugg, put the family house up for sale to help finance the trip. "They are making a tremendous sacrifice to help me do this. I'm lucky to have supportive parents like I have." Cathy Schnugg says it costs about $40,000 for one year at the academy. Scott says he hopes to pay his parents back. At best, he'd like the payback to include a career on the ATP Tour; at the least, a full scholarship for tennis to a large university. "Right now, I'm in contact with North Carolina, Michigan and a few others," says Schnugg. "I have to contact them for them to be able to talk to me. Several big schools seem interested. "The point of going to the academy would be to make my college experience easier and cheaper. When I get through with that academy, I'm going to be a totally different player." "It's a no-flash, all-substance tennis school," says Schnugg. "The teachers don't wear fancy tennis clothes and don't even use the best rackets. It's a place where you go to work hard and get better." Macci, a five-time United States Tennis Association national coach of the year for juniors and professionals, has coached such renowned juniors as Jennifer Capriati, Mary Pierce and Venus and Serena Williams. All have had major success on the women's professional tour. Schnugg, who expects to be rated among the top 100 nationally in boys 18 singles by the USTA by next April, visited Macci last winter. "What's intriguing to me about him is that he's a raw, moldable player who has the potential to play an even bigger game," says Macci. "We will drill, play matches and work on the mental parts of the game about six hours a day. I want to spend the time with this kid." Schnugg didn't lose a game last week in the SOC district tournament, but he says there's still plenty to on in anticipation of major-college play. "Once I get to college, academics will take priority over my tennis, although not by much," says Schnugg, who has a 3.85 grade-point average. Schnugg realizes he might not make it to the pros. "It depends on how much I improve," he says. North Medford coach Cary Collins says Schnugg is ready to take the big step up. "I think he's outgrown Medford in terms of his improvement in tennis," says Collins. The Schnugg family is a tennis family. Cathy and Steve are both rated players in the USTA national rating system. Steve Schnugg Jr., Scott's older brother, won the SOC boys singles title for North Medford in 1997. He's a student at Georgia Tech University. "Steve is good enough to play college tennis," says Scott. "But he's too smart to be a tennis player. He's got other things going in his life." Nate Schnugg, 10, is already whipping older junior players. "He's better than I was at age 10," says Scott. "He's going to be awesome if he learns to put in the time on the court." Cathy Schnugg admits she has reservations about letting Scott leave home a year early. "Actually, Scott could be graduating (from North Medford) this year," says Cathy. "But I held him back as long as I could when he was younger because I want to keep my boys with me until I'm sure they are ready to go away. "I won't let Scott go out that door if I don't think he's ready. But I know he is. It's hard, but I know he's prepared and he wants to do it so badly." Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, OR U.S.A.