Bryan's Matt Hillestad is preparing for his fourth regional tennis tournament with his fourth doubles partner.

It's not that Hillestad is difficult to work with. Quite the contrary. It's that he is anxious to share his success.

"Can I have him another year?" asked Bryan coach Randy Stewart, who says Hillestad is a great team player. "I want to redshirt him."

There's a good reason he's in demand. Hillestad played mixed doubles as a freshman and has competed in boys doubles each of the last three years, and he and his partners have advanced to the Class 5A Region II quarterfinals each time.

His teammate this season is Michael Martin. The pair finished second at the District 12-5A meet, which finished up at the Bryan Indoor Tennis Center while the rain poured outside Friday. They lost to A&M Consolidated's Nathan Cooner and Carlos Aguilar in the championship match.

"I like to support my teammates and get them in a good mood before the match," said the 6-foot-5 Hillestad. "I think having fun puts you in a good mood. If you get mad, you get down on yourself and start playing bad, so I try to cheer on my teammates."

He plays hard, but stays even-tempered during matches.

"I try to keep it up-tempo, but I have fun with my partner," Hillestad said. "That's what I love about doubles."

Martin and Hillestad will play at the Waco Regional Tennis Center, where they opened the District 12-5A tournament and he has plenty of experience. He's played there all four seasons of his high school career.

Each year, his team has won its first round match in three sets and lost to a seeded opponent in the second round.

"My serve has been really good, but I love being at the net," said Hillestad, whose height makes him a formidable opponent there. "I can hit overheads and also hit finesse volleys. I don't just have a hard serve. I can also place the serve really well."

It's tough to overlook a 6-5 player. It can be intimidating.

"I like to hit a lot of finesse shots," Hillestad said. "I place my volleys really well. It's fun to see the reactions. It's a combination of the power and [that] I can almost place the shots wherever I want."

His teaming with fellow senior Michael Martin has worked well.

"Michael complements me a lot with his returns and his groundstroke game, so we make a good doubles team."

As a freshman, Hillestad played mixed doubles with Ashley Gregg. He moved to boys doubles as a sophomore, playing alongside Nathan Thompson. As a junior, Hillestad's partner was Brady Atkins.

Despite the constant changes, one thing stayed the same -- Hillestad won.

"I'll adapt, because I can play either side returning," Hillestad said. "It doesn't matter who serves first, because I am adept at the net."

Stewart believes that Hillestad's strength is his competitiveness, which has allowed him to play with partners whose styles vary dramatically.

"He's the consummate doubles player," Stewart insists. "Each one has played with had a different style of game. His game never changed. It's hustle, so you can just play."

While playing Friday on an indoor court that still had wet spots brought indoors by the fierce storm, Hillestad displayed that hustle.

"He ran back for one lob, got to the first and then stepped in water that was underneath the fence," Stewart said. "He turned around, got back into the point and was running across water to cover where he thought the shot ought to go. His foot slipped going down to the court but he almost got it.

"He never gives up."

Never.

"Last year he broke his foot trying to get to a shot," Stewart said. "He jumped on a fence, cracked a bone in his foot and played the rest of his match. Of course, we didn't know it was broken, but he stayed and gave the other kids something to think about: If this guys is hurt and still wants to compete, I can compete."

While the competitive fires helps make Hillestad good, Stewart says that he has a complete game.

"He's got all of the strokes," Stewart said. "He thinks well on the court and he doesn't know the meaning of the words 'don't hustle.'"

5A REGION II BOYS TENNIS

* When/where: Tuesday-Wednesday at the Waco Regional Tennis Center