The Asbury women’s tennis team is now in full swing of their 2023 Spring season with a 1-1 record.
Last week, the Lady Eagles took on their rivals from Transylvania University. It resulted in their first-season loss, 7-2.
One of the wins for the Eagles came from their fifth singles player, Kourtney Kawata. She spent a grueling two hours on the court to get the last points of the night.
Kawata is only a sophomore at Asbury, so her experience has been relatively new. She only discovered the school around two years ago.
For most of her life, Kawata lived in Louisville, under two hours away from the campus she had never heard of.
Her journey to the university began when she competed in a showcase for Kentucky juniors and seniors. It was designed to essentially show off their skills and attract various colleges to prospective athletes.
During her competition, Kawata, funny enough, didn’t catch the eye of Asbury’s Coach Miller. Still, after a recommendation from a family friend, she approached him as he was leaving and set up a tour of the school.
Her primary interest was in photojournalism and media communications. Based on the recommendation, she decided to check out the school’s popular program.
After just 10 minutes of walking through the Miller building for the first time, Kawata told her dad, “Yeah, so I’m gonna go here.” She signed four days later.
When she started her freshman year, she experienced a difficult transition period. She came from a high school where she was the only experienced player at a collegiate level, surrounded by others like her.
“I’ve just always played for myself. And so now I’m out there, representing my school and representing like the team, and it just makes me want to put forth my full effort,” Kawata said.
When she arrived, Kawata worked to get used to the new team environment. It became an ever-evolving process.
“I felt like a little a little on the outskirts when I first came here,” Kawata said. “I got integrated, but then they all left. They all graduated, so now we have a brand new team. It’s like starting over again.”
With the team comprised primarily of first- and second-year students this year, Kawata has become one of the more senior players from the former varsity squad.
“Mary Grace and I are basically the only two people from last year because even the JV girls from last year, we had completely different practice times,” Kawata said.
Now, the team is working on integrating all 11 girls into one larger and more cohesive group.
“I’m just trying to create some new like team chemistry, and just one on one relationships with people on the team,” Kawata said. “That chemistry between those like top six people is like really key to being successful.”
One thing Kawata enjoys on the team is how Coach Miller prioritizes the girls’ characters on the team. Miller also emphasizes the student behind the athlete.
“It’s a really nice environment that he creates,” Kawata said. “It’s very much a feel of you are more than a student-athlete; you know, it’s not all about winning.”
While winning is a motivator, one of the big focuses going into their tournaments over spring break is playing their best in the five days and growing together on their trip.
“When you travel with each other, that’s a really good bonding experience for everyone,” Kawata said.
The women are set to take on Maryville College on March 10. Then they go to Hilton Head for their spring break tournament on March 13.