Freshman tennis player exceeds expectations
Imagine stepping into a sports program as a freshman in college and not knowing what to expect.
Imagine after a few weeks of practice, you find out that your role on the team is going to be greater than originally anticipated, and you need to step up.
This is exactly the scenario that freshman tennis player Aubree Brown was faced with coming into Waynesburg University this year.
“Going into the season, I saw myself filling the number three or four singles role on the team,” said Brown. “When I ended up as the number two singles player and on the number one doubles team, I was excited and overwhelmed at the same time.”
Head coach Ron Christman had similar expectations for Brown coming into the season, but some circumstances changed things for the team.
“We lost a few recruits coming into the year, which caused Aubree to be placed into a bigger role,” said Christman. “Aubree really stepped up, though, and she may have ended up in those same roles even if we had those [other] recruits.”
Christman is excited about Brown in the coming years due to her promise shown as a freshman.
“It’s encouraging that she will be here for another three years,” said Christman. “She can be one of the best players in the conference.”
Christman said Brown has the work ethic and talent to be an impactful player for the team in the coming years.
“With her work ethic, there’s no doubt that she has the ability to be something special,” said Christman. “For Aubree, the sky is the limit.”
Brown went to Hempfield High School in Greensburg, Pennsylvania and had many different schools to choose from as she started to make her college decision. She was recruited by many schools in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference, including Westminster and Washington & Jefferson, as well as some Division II schools. She felt her opportunities were the best at Waynesburg, and decided to become a Yellow Jacket.
The first year was a learning experience for Brown in terms of playing singles, as she had only played doubles when she was in high school.
“Singles is different because you are out there by yourself needing to make adjustments on your own with only a little help from your coach,” said Brown. “In doubles, I was used to using my partner to work with, so it was a major adjustment.”
Brown finished the season 2-11 in singles play, but she knows this first year was going to be a good learning experience for her. Christman has no doubt that she will learn and improve from her experience in singles play this year.
“Aubree really stands out with her work ethic,” said Christman. “She is very involved in the sport and always eager to learn more.”
Playing on the first-doubles team with senior Rachel Klemash was beneficial for Brown as well, as she was able to learn from a senior while also playing great competition. The duo went 7-8 for the Yellow Jackets.
The PAC tournament that concluded on Oct. 24 proved to be a great learning experience for Brown, as everything that she had worked for during the season was on the line in this tournament.
In singles play, she was the No. 7 seed playing against the No. 2 seed and fell in straight sets 6-1, 6-1. Despite the loss, Brown thinks she put in a great effort.
Brown and Klemash’s doubles match in the tournament was an impressive match, as they almost managed to upset the second seeded team of Karolina Lagerquist and Maggie Manchester from Grove City. They were on top almost the entire match, but ultimately fell in a tiebreak 9-8 (7-4). Christman said it might have easily been their best match of the year.
“Aubree really stood out with her movement on the court and how aggressive she was,” said Christman. “She was not afraid to step up and attack the weaknesses of her opponents.”
Her doubles partner, Klemash, also noticed a big difference in her game during the match.
“I could tell that she was super comfortable during the match,” said Klemash. “It was nice to see her that confident; Aubree handled herself very well.”
Christman recruited Brown not only for her talent on the tennis court, but because of her character as well.
Her leadership qualities were put on display early in her career, as she was immediately named the second-singles player and alongside Klemash on the first-doubles team. Klemash said she had an adjustment to make with her new doubles partner.
“She definitely brought a lot of things to the table; she had different strengths and weaknesses than my previous partner,” said Klemash. “She developed a lot of confidence throughout the season and definitely grew as a player.”
As she continues to grow, Brown feels that there is still a lot that she can work on to get better for next year.
“For next year, I want to make sure that I am more confident in my abilities and be more consistent,” said Brown. “If I do that, I will definitely start to win more matches.”