First season tennis players junior Analiese Crossen and freshman Cadence Emick were selected to play on the varsity team by Coach Shawn Gardner.
“[They] won a lot, had good challenges and good form,” said Gardner when asked about the enhanced tennis skills both girls possess, which earned them a spot on the varsity team.
Crossen played on varsity the longest between the two, starting close to the beginning of this school year.
“[Analiese] had more wins than most during practice and is an excellent hustler when it comes to returning hits,” said Gardner.
Crossen described having ambivalent feelings of nervousness and excitement when reminiscing her first time on varsity.
“Yes, I do feel more pressure playing on varsity since, respectfully, varsity counts more than JV. But, even though there’s more pressure on me I still like playing varsity more than JV,” said Crossen.
During her little time playing varsity Emick still displayed admirable knowledge for techniques.
In addition to having more experience, Coach Gardner noted that Emick showed, “good strokes and excellent top-spin,” when asked about what he saw in her.
“It was really fun playing in an actual match, but it also made me nervous because our points actually counted toward the game” said Emick.
Emick said she did feel more stressed playing varsity because more people watch and pay attention to varsity, along with people constantly talking to the coaches about [her] playing and hearing criticism.
Emick, prior to playing properly on the girls’ tennis team, attended the Loyalsock Tennis Camp over the summer with Coach John of the Loyalsock Tennis team.
“I liked playing [varsity], but it’s not as fun as JV because I can’t goof around as much” said Emick. “I prefer laughing with my teammates and doing whatever on JV since it doesn’t count as much.”
Featured photo (at top): Junior Analiese Crossen returns a serve during her doubles match against Bloomsburg. Crossen and her partner, junior Ava Barto, played two incredible sets that match, winning Montoursville another point against Bloomsburg. Photo by Sophia Perez
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