Despite finishing with the best record in school history, the Syracuse tennis team does not have a specific team leader. The older players take it upon themselves as a committee to teach their younger teammates.

‘We have such good leadership that there isn’t that go-to person,’ head coach Luke Jensen said. ‘They all take personal responsibility with their practices, their conditioning and their attitude.’

In terms of veteran leadership, look no further than juniors Chelsea Jones and Ashley Spicer, the oldest and most seasoned players on a team with no seniors. With two seasons apiece under their belts, the younger players have looked to them for guidance.

One of the first qualities of the freshmen and sophomores that rubbed off on their teammates is toughness.

During a practice last weekend Emily Harman wound up and fired a forehand in Simone Kalhorn’s direction. The ball accidentally hit her in the face, breaking her nose.

Kalhorn did not run to the bathroom to fix the problem, nor did she take any time off from the team to recover. She knew the magnitude of Syracuse’s final three matches of the season and would not let herself miss them.

Kalhorn went 6-0 in those three events, winning all her doubles and singles matches.

Not to be outdone, Harman had a bizarre encounter of her own. Against St. John’s, she was hit in the eye socket with the ball after one of her opponent’s shots. Harman could barely see straight.

But clear vision took a back seat to the match at hand. Harman got up and won the contest.

The determination and toughness extends beyond the match court. In practice this week, Jensen had the team run suicide sprints at the end of regular practice. The rule says whoever wins the race gets to be done with practice for the day. The team continued to run the drill until the last play was finished.

‘This team draws inspiration from each other,’ Jensen said. ‘I say, ‘Girls, we need to step up,’ and they do.’

The dynamic of the team may be somewhat atypical, but that in no way means the end result was not desirable. A freshman led the team at the No. 1 spot throughout the year, while a junior duo anchored the team with strong doubles play and leadership.

Freshman Alessondra Parra, a late addition to the team, had no trouble fitting into the system. She earned an 11-7 record this season at the No. 3 and 4 spots under the guidance of her older teammates.

‘When I came to Syracuse, I felt like it was really easy for me to pick up where the older players had already established certain habits and patterns,’ Parra said. ‘They had to build the program from scratch. The new players have it easy, I think.’

Parra said she was influenced by Kalhorn’s work ethic and intensity and has tried to incorporate that attitude into her play.

‘To be honest, it was really easy for me to come in and try to emulate everything that the older players had already been doing,’ Parra said.

Even if there is no clear go-to team leader, Jones and Spicer have still played a pivotal role on and off the court. Jones is the only player on the team to have participated in two Big East tournaments. Spicer, who transferred from Washington State, has played in one.

‘We’ve done this a couple times, I’ve played this tournament twice,’ Jones said. ‘Spicer has played in the toughest conference in the country. That experience is going to guide the team, calm them down and help them realize that it’s just a tennis ball.’

Syracuse closed out its season with a seven-match winning streak. The Orange will need to use that momentum heading into the Big East tournament, which begins on April 16 in Tampa, Fla. The veteran players know what lies ahead for Syracuse and continue to impart that knowledge to their younger teammates, just like they have done all season.

‘It’s the same match that we always play, the same game that we always play,’ Jones said. ‘It doesn’t matter what the circumstances are.’

azmeola@syr.edu

Published on April 10, 2009 at 12:00 pm