Let’s put away the sarcastic tone for a little while. I miss
college tennis. I know that when I look back on the memories that I’ve had,
even when I’m the shriveled up ninety-four year old woman, I’ll smile. College
tennis makes me that person in the
grocery store that picks up a tomato and starts cracking up about something
that someone said that day, and everyone thinks to themselves “I wonder what’s
so funny about that tomato,” or, more likely, “That chick is off her rocker.”
Tennis being an individual sport, team tennis sometimes just
doesn’t make sense. How can you put six girls on six consecutive courts and
expect them to play for each other rather than for themselves? It took me two
years to figure that out- how my court and my match, even though I’m playing
individually, counts for a great goal, that my attitude affects the attitude of
my friends on the courts beside me, and that a look and a simple “let’s go
Noles” and a slap of a hand can start an electricity of camaraderie that can be
felt but not only us but by the fans and the other team.
Your team become your sisters, your family- regardless of how much they annoy you sometimes, you’ll always be there by their side if anything happens to them, and always are there for a hug and a good laugh. The memories that I will remember rarely have something to do with tennis, ironic enough. Yes, I’ll remember how we beat the Gators, and how a freshie clinched a match for us. I’ll remember ACCs of my senior year, when we got to the finals. How amazing it feels to clinch a match for your team. But the memories that are more near and dear to my heart are the silly laughs that we have in our hotel rooms and at home just hanging out, the deep debates about the meaning of life (and marriage!) on road trips, and the feeling of knowing that you have a group of girls in your life that you would do anything for, and would in return to anything for you.
Your team become your sisters, your family- regardless of how much they annoy you sometimes, you’ll always be there by their side if anything happens to them, and always are there for a hug and a good laugh. The memories that I will remember rarely have something to do with tennis, ironic enough. Yes, I’ll remember how we beat the Gators, and how a freshie clinched a match for us. I’ll remember ACCs of my senior year, when we got to the finals. How amazing it feels to clinch a match for your team. But the memories that are more near and dear to my heart are the silly laughs that we have in our hotel rooms and at home just hanging out, the deep debates about the meaning of life (and marriage!) on road trips, and the feeling of knowing that you have a group of girls in your life that you would do anything for, and would in return to anything for you.
Now that I’m done being a weepy powder puff, I’ll make a
list so you know what you’re getting into:
23 things/advice/ect. about college tennis:
After a while, it becomes a waste of time to unpack your luggage.
You will inadvertently find yourself with a new nickname or “line,” and it probably will be embarrassing (i.e. Would you rather be really smart or really dumb? Okay, I admit, not very clever. BUT I did have an underlining, deeper metaphor that no one really understood or understands, but I won’t waste my breath...)
What is said in the van on road trips, stays in the van.
Sign up for Delta sky miles.
You’ll feel like a mini-celebrity when someone comes up to you and mentions your good match that you played against so-and-so, and you have no clue who they are.
On that note, it makes you smile when an opponent’s fan yells at your court for you calling a ball out, and your own fans yell “You want some cheese with that whine?”
7
Guys play lets on serves, girls don’t.
Guys play lets on serves, girls don’t.
8
Go to class. Go to class. Go to class.
Go to class. Go to class. Go to class.
It is possible to play in the line-up and still have a good GPA. On that note, remember that you didn’t come to college to play professional tennis- you’re a student first now, an athlete second.
After four years, you won’t have enough closet space to fit all your clothes.
1
You’ll lift more weight, run, bike, swim, row, more than you ever thought you’d be able to.
You’ll lift more weight, run, bike, swim, row, more than you ever thought you’d be able to.
1
The ice tub is cold. Just thought you should know.
The ice tub is cold. Just thought you should know.
People will assume you have a bunch of kids when
you buy Pedialyte for the team on road trips, but really it prevents cramping more than Powerade does.
You do not drink Gatorade. Anything with Gator
in it is automatically off limits. (That’s if you play for the Noles, that
is)
1No mascot is cooler than your mascot. No anthem
is cooler than your anthem. No color is better than your colors.
I It will all fly by in a blink of an eye.
1So enjoy it. Let things go. Hug more. Try your
very hardest.
College will be an amazing four years of your
life. You’ll juggle tennis, school, and social life in an unimaginably busy
schedule, but at the end of the day...
You’ll always remember the way your coach said “I’m proud of you,” will always remember the players that hug you when you lose a clinching match, and will always remember the feel of your racquet, the sounds of the crowd, and the looks of the players by your side when you step on the court to play the final match of your career.
You’ll always remember the way your coach said “I’m proud of you,” will always remember the players that hug you when you lose a clinching match, and will always remember the feel of your racquet, the sounds of the crowd, and the looks of the players by your side when you step on the court to play the final match of your career.
And you’ll always be there, whether physically
or in spirit, and you’ll be a true fan of your team forever.
-Katie
