Tennis Team is on a Roll

Kyra Nowacki knowa780@uwsp.edu

The Pointers Women’s Tennis team is making quite an improvement this season compared to their last.

Although the team has a brand new head coach and four new players, they have managed to win eight out of ten matches; surpassing the amount of wins they had last year.

Additionally, the team swept Milwaukee School of Engineering and Concordia this past weekend, making it their sixth match in a row that they have won. This has been the longest winning streak in over fourteen years for the team.

“I believe one of the reasons why we are so successful this year is that the girls are playing more aggressively against their opponents,” said Deena Gordon, head coach for the Women’s Tennis team.

“Katelyn Asfeld and Hayley Schlueter, both freshmen, have been a great addition to the team,” Gordon said.

She believes all of her freshmen are adjusting and transitioning well into the team.

“I think the hardest part for me about this whole thing is being away from home,” Asfeld said.

Asfeld, Lexi Buntrock, and Lhea Owens, all freshmen, said that the team is like a second family to them. Because of this bond, the transition from high school to college was a lot easier.

Asfeld, Buntrock, and Owens believe one of the key reasons for their success this year is because all of the players get along and have each other’s back.

“We just get along and play good together and that is why we are so successful,” Asfeld said.

Transfer student McKenzie McCray says her team success comes from their motivation to become better athletes and their willingness to work hard at the task at hand.

Although McCray saw the 2012- 2013 season record, she still wanted to play here and felt that the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point was the right place for her. “We are just one big family here,” McCray said.

Even though the season is winding down, the team still has multiple improvements to make. Gordon goes into great detail about how she is pushing her players to play more competitively on the court.

She also wants her doubles teams to work on “poaching”, a technique where the player in front of the net attempts to intercept the ball and make a winning volley.

Gordon says her team is constantly improving and striving to be the best. She believes their improvement will be evident very soon.

McCray says the team is making changes weekly to prepare themselves for their up-coming matches.

out points as if it’s a match to help us prepare for the next matches,” McCray said. She also explains that they have been working on their drills and deep shots to enhance their performance.

With only a couple of matches left in the season, the team’s main goals are to be within the top four teams in their conference and make it to the NCAA Tournament.

Gordon stresses that the team’s hardest match-ups will be with UW-Whitewater and UW-Eau Claire.

“Whitewater is good every year,” Gordon said.

The team will host UW-Whitewater on Oct. 1 and UW-Eau Claire on Oct. 4.

The team practices every day for two hours, usually from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., and additionally each player must do an hour of conditioning on their own to reach their ultimate goal.

The team is very busy, but they still find time to have a weekly team- bonding meeting. Asfeld, Buntrock, and Owens explain that they love spending time with their teammates and cannot wait to see how their season will end.

“At practices, we are playing out points as if it’s a match to help us prepare for the next matches,” McCray said. She also explains that they have been working on their drills and deep shots to enhance their performance.

With only a couple of matches left in the season, the team’s main goals are to be within the top four teams in their conference and make it to the NCAA Tournament.

Gordon stresses that the team’s hardest match-ups will be with UW-Whitewater and UW-Eau Claire.

“Whitewater is good every year,” Gordon said.

The team will host UW-Whitewater on Oct. 1 and UW-Eau Claire on Oct. 4.

The team practices every day for two hours, usually from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., and additionally each player must do an hour of conditioning on their own to reach their ultimate goal.

The team is very busy, but they still find time to have a weekly team- bonding meeting. Asfeld, Buntrock, and Owens explain that they love spending time with their teammates and cannot wait to see how their season will end.