Even with the Emory University men’s and women’s tennis teams being ranked in the top 10 this season, coaches and players are motivated to improve more in anticipation of the NCAA Division III Tennis Championships. The women’s team is currently ranked second in the nation and finished in second place at the UAA championship from April 24 to 26, losing to the University of Chicago (UChicago) in the finals, their third loss against them this year. The men’s team, ranked sixth nationally, finished in third place at the tournament after losing to Case Western Reserve University (Ohio) in the semifinals and beating New York University (NYU) in the third-place game.
John Browning, coach of the Emory men’s tennis team, has been the leader of the program since 1999 and mentioned how the team’s ability to bounce back during the UAA matchups demonstrates their resilience.
“The thing I watched is not necessarily the level of the performance, it’s more the mental tenacity and the ability to handle the ups and the downs,” Browning said. “The way they came back and played the third-place match against NYU reflects their character.”
While the men’s team may not have had the smoothest start to the season, Browning said he remains hopeful for his current players and aims to view the season in a positive light, rather than a negative one.
“I still feel really good about this team,” Browning said. “With a new team, it’s a journey, and it takes a while to get the right lineup in place.”
With multiple freshman and graduate students, Browning mentioned the importance 0f mentorship between team members for pushing the group in the right direction.
“We also have two of the graduate students who bring that maturity and that wisdom and calmness for the younger guys,” Browning said. “You have the talent, you've got the work ethic and then you’ve got a trend that you’re starting to see going in the right direction.”
Graduate student Efe Comu and freshman Ajay Kartik are players who have benefitted from a mentor-mentee relationship. Kartik said he has learned from watching Comu and other team leaders’ play and leadership, which has helped him move into the singles ladder.
Comu said the positive team dynamic helps members stay eager to improve and emulate their previous success. He said the impressive individual performances in the UAA matches are keeping the team confident going into the NCAA tournament.
“We have the quality to win four or five spots against every single team,” Comu said. “The energy throughout the weekend was good, us staying together and us competing together.”
Graduate student Efe Comu extends to keep the point alive in a doubles match.
Head coach of the women’s tennis team Bridget Disher said that this season has been one of the best since 2021, when the women’s team won the NCAA championship. She said that she focuses on performances that matter, like winning against opponents the team struggled to beat last year, over insignificant losses.
“We won a match against Wesleyan [University] in the quarterfinals of the ITA Indoor Championships, which was a rematch of our elite eight match from last year, where we lost to them 5-4 and this year we won it 4-3,” Disher said. “Two wins against Pomona[-Pitzer], who we had lost to last year as well. So, a lot of redemption happening, and a lot of confidence building the team, which has been awesome.”
With a 15-5 overall record, the women’s team has had a successful season. Reflecting on their three losses against UChicago, Disher sees their struggle as a learning opportunity for her players to gain the confidence to beat them in the NCAA tournament.
“It’s an element of approaching that match and playing free and playing confident,” Disher said. “At the end of the day, they have the experience of being there and playing that team and pushing that team. Going into the tournament, if we end up seeing them again, I really like our odds.”
Junior Emily Kantrovitz, the number one singles and doubles player for the Eagles, added that facing off against UChicago again at the NCAA championships would be a great opportunity to grow and finally surpass that consistent challenge.
“If you’re gonna play a team, it’s unlikely that you’re gonna have the same result every single time,” Kantrovitz said. “It’s definitely a mental aspect as well since we haven’t necessarily come out on top those three times, of just having the confidence like, ‘OK, we’ve been so close, we can do this, we have to believe in ourselves that we can get there.’”
After each match, Disher is intentional about having her players reflect on what went well and what they can improve. She said this practice has led to better chemistry on the team, as well as individual player growth.
“Every match matters for us, win or lose, in terms of what we learn from it and what we take from it,” Disher said. “At this point of this season, you’re taking the things that you did well and you’re using that to build your confidence, and you’re really leaning into your strengths as a player, because in terms of development or fixing things, you’re not gonna do that right now.”
Although the women’s team did not win the UAA championship, Kantrovitz sees the loss as a stepping stone and an opportunity to emulate the positives and learn from ways she and her teammates can improve. She said she was happy with the incredible energy and motivating team dynamic that the team brought to the UAA matches.
“It’s really important to be loud and to cheer for each other, because you can’t necessarily see what’s going on on some of the other courts,” Kantrovitz said. “Constantly being loud, letting your teammates know how it’s going and supporting everyone on your bank and next to you, is something we did really well and something to definitely keep bringing into our later matches this season.”
Although neither team received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, their high rankings and great season performances point toward an at-large selection. Both the men’s and women’s teams will find out their official status for their respective tournaments on May 5. Both teams are looking to finish out their seasons strong, with the men’s championship spanning from May 19 to 26 and the women’s championship from May 20 to 27.
