PC: Stephanie Beck; An ND tennis match
Thwack, shuffle, whoosh! That’s the sound of a tennis ball being hit back and forth. Tennis is a racquet sport played on a rectangular court with either two people on opposite teams (singles) or four people who play in pairs (doubles). The teams hit a ball back and forth over a low net with the objective of placing the ball on the opposite side so that the opponent cannot hit it back within one bounce. With Notre Dame’s tennis season wrapping up for this year, both the JV and Varsity teams have come so far! But what are the details behind their progress? The Regents are fighting strong in the Skyline Division with Varsity having a 4-6 win to loss record, and JV with a record of 0-4. For JV, there are only three more games left in the general season, while there are nine for Varsity.
Singles player, Ameya Sharma, is proud of the team’s growth and the community they’ve built. She says, “I love the people, the coaches, the racquet, even the ball”. Notably, she remembers a match against Notre Dame Belmont as a true wake up call for how far she’s come. Although the opponent proved to be especially formidable, using slices and dropshots (types of tennis hits), Sharma realized how much her stamina had improved and felt encouragement from hearing her teammates clap for her. With that extra push, Sharma was able to pull through that match when she was at the cusp of giving up.
Doubles player, Freya Van Herck has a similar perspective. She too values the spirit of the team as a whole, as well as the sportsmanship exhibited in the league. She says, even if the opposing team made a good play, “we clap rackets for the other teams… Everyone’s really supportive.” Van Herck also recently made the jump from JV to Varsity this year, and notes the challenge of going from six games a season to eighteen and having less practice time in-between. Playing doubles, Van Herck says communication with her partner is key, helping a lot when it comes to figuring out how they both can improve.
Both players cite the large impact of a tight-knit community and passion for the sport as reasons for their success. In a sport such as tennis, where there are only a few players on the court, it is easy to get lost in the individuality, without reflecting on how you represent and impact the entirety of an organization. It is in teams like Notre Dame’s, where athletes nurture and support each other, that the real joy of tennis can come out.