Causing a Racket with Girls’ Tennis

Natalie Singh

Tennis is an extremely competitive and endurance based sport that is capable of being played year-round, whether at Lincoln-Way or at indoor facilities nearby. The training for this sport mainly consists of running and stamina drills. Much of the conditioning we do during practice is sprints, movement drills on court, or footwork practice. A typical day for an athlete in this sport is practice after school for about two hours. Practice consists of a warm-up and stretch in the beginning and then drills, conditioning, and ball machine work. Usually on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the tennis team has a match that is home or away. If that is the case, matches will usually last around 1-2 hours and players often get home around 6:30 or sometimes close to 7 o’ clock at night.

Our goals for the team has for this year are winning the conference tournament, or at least placing second. Another goal the team has is to send a player to state. Both of these goals would help strengthen the program and build upon the strong ground work the tennis program has gained over the last ten years.

I, personally, have been playing since I was in seventh grade. My sister played on the tennis team at West and my parents often encouraged my sisters and I to go hit at the courts together when the weather was nice. At first I was reluctant, but the more I played, the more I realized how much I loved it and how good I actually was at the sport. Tennis is a really great way to be active and to meet new people. It also gives you a competitive sport that you can play for the rest of your life. I recommend trying tennis if you are looking for a super fun and challenging sport that provides you with a great team experience here at West.