If not for tennis, perhaps baseball

Forest Lake's Dusty Boyer won his state record-tying third Class 2A boys' tennis singles championship last week. He took a few moments from his busy tennis schedule to talk to staff writer Jim Paulsen.

Most memorable moment as a high school athlete: Winning state in ninth grade. That was my first one. But none of them are that much different. They're all about the same.

First memory of organized sports: Probably playing Tee-ball and soccer. I played baseball until eighth grade. I was better at baseball than tennis.

How important is tennis to you? Pretty high. I've met a million people through it, and I've made a lot of friends.

What would you be doing if you weren't playing tennis? I'd probably be in the state baseball tournament. I know Forest Lake qualified for that. That would be sweet.

What is the strangest thing you've experienced on court? In the [state semifinal] match against Wyatt (McCoy), one of the Mahtomedi kids that was playing doubles next to us threw his hat on our court. Never had that happen before.

Do you prefer to play indoors or outdoors? If it's the finals of a tournament, probably indoors. But it depends on the opponent.

You're pretty fair-skinned. Does playing outdoors bother you? Yeah, I burn pretty easily. I go from white to red, then I peel, then I'm white again.

One small tip before a big match: Drink more than normal. You don't want to get thirsty during a match. That can affect how you play.