The girl’s tennis team had a pretty rough start to their 2024 spring season as their former coach, Tommy Salazar has quit his position due to personal family reasons. Fortunately, they got right back on track with a new coach sooner than expected. Coach Olivia Andrew-Kotarba, former volleyball coach and current Empowerment teacher, came to the rescue as she took the coaching spot the same morning as the first official spring practice day.
It has been stated that coach Olivia has played tennis before, however she had never played nor coached professionally. She said “It’ll be a learning journey for all of us and are there to have fun, not win every game”, which is encouraging especially for the new girls who joined this year. Coach Olivia had recruited several new girls this year since she has close relationships with the students, she even recruited new students to be managers! Last season they consisted of four players and this season consists of twelve players, three returning from last year, all with different skill experience.
The season had started rocky, but confident. Even though their coach had to leave, they were still able to start on time and have a strong team. The girls have been practicing twice a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and are getting ready for their upcoming games against Thornton and Englewood, as well as many more to come. So far the ladies have been having fun going against each other in practice, getting that gaming experience in while still learning the game. Even if the girls aren’t able to win all their games, they will still enjoy every effort they put in.
