LILYDALE Squash Club’s Courtney Scholtz has secured her first national title at the 2016 Australian Junior Squash Open in Devonport.
With five wins from five matches, Scholtz finished on top of the standings to take out the Girls Under 11s national title on the weekend of 26-27 March.
Even after her undefeated run in Tasmania, the rising star, 10, said she had to overcome nerves and tough opposition.
“It’s really exciting, I was shocked and I wasn’t expecting it,” she said.
“It was tough, there were heaps of really hard matches.
“When I was going to play my matches, I couldn’t feel my legs.
“There were a lot of people watching, so I just pretended that it was just me and my opponent … and that helped me.”
The youngster had a large group of supporters, some of whom had travelled further than just across Bass Strait.
This included her grandparents, who were visiting from South Africa, along with her parents and her coach, Paul Price.
Price is a former British Open finalist and world No.4.
“I’ve been training with Paul for about eight months,” she said.
“We’ve been doing all the basic drills and things relating to fitness and nutrition.”
Scholtz said she had aspirations of competing at an elite senior level.
“If it ever comes into it, I’d love to play squash in the Olympics,” she said.
“But if it doesn’t, I would want to be a part of the British Open.”
