Tennis: Twice as good
As the saying goes, “you’ve never experienced anything until you’ve done it twice.”
Jill Smith and Lauren Monson played just one doubles match together while they were on the tennis team at Skyline High School in Salt Lake City, but now after two years of playing together at Utah State the pair is rolling through the competition.
Time has made all the difference in the world for the sophomore Monson and junior Smith.
“Playing together so much has helped a ton,” Monson said. “Especially in getting used to each other’s games.”
The pair started the spring season at No. 3 doubles and entering March had a 4-3 record against their doubles competition. After the team’s trip to Hawaii in the middle of March, where they played their first match at No. 2 doubles, winning 9-7 over Bowdoin’s pair, Smith and Monson clicked.
The Ides of March had nothing on them as they rolled off three straight wins at the No. 3 spot 8-5, 8-5 and 8-1 and earned a new spot in the lineup at No. 2 doubles.
Even though it was an unlucky first draw as Smith and Monson lost to Boise State’s pair 8-0 the Aggies have won three of their last four partly because of the duo from Skyline.
“In our first match at No. 2 doubles we played against probably one of the hardest teams we played this season,” Smith said. “There was a lot of pressure and I kind of choked a little bit.”
“We don’t think about being No. 2 anymore,” Monson said. “Sometimes we could think about it too much. We just stepped up and proved we could do it.”
Since that weekend tournament in Boise, Idaho, Smith and Monson have won two of three with their aggressive brand of high-energy tennis.
“When we attack and move forward that’s when we play well, when we play aggressive doubles,” Smith said. “[Monson] is more of an aggressive player but I’ll set her up for winners.”
The pair seems to have the perfect mix of contrasting talents as Smith is a grinder that prefers the baseline and Monson is a monster at the net. Not just that but their personalities add to the aggressiveness and enjoyment of the match.
“Lauren and I are really good at pumping each other up,” Smith said. “We have a lot of energy out there. We give a lot of high fives.”
With all the commotion and celebration going on it’s still important for the pair to keep serious in the mini-huddles between each point.
“It can get really serious,” Monson said. “Sometimes people just goof around in doubles and it doesn’t really matter but we’re high energy from the start of the match.”
After all the court time the two have logged together they’ve developed a sixth sense to help evaluate their competition. In the early stages of the match and sometimes even during warm ups Monson said they’ll know if the match will be a laugher or a hard-fought match.
The pair has already played more matches together this season than last year, when they went 9-9. All the matches have added to their confidence on the court and have helped Monson avoid the dreaded sophomore slump.
“Confidence is huge,” Monson said. “With all the tennis I’ve played I keep gaining more and more. I gain so much from matches even when I lose. I feel like it’s been a huge factor and I’ve improved a lot.”
Even with the burgeoning success the two haven’t morphed into the same person. Monson said she loves doubles while Smith prefers singles. Part of that are the talents of each.
Smith said Monson is naturally talented at doubles since she is equipped with a huge lefty serve and has an awesome volley around the net, while Smith enjoys the more competitive aspects of her singles matches because it’s just her on the court.
“It’s really challenging, mentally and physically,” she said. “I’m really competitive and I like competing one on one. It’s one of the only sports where it’s really individual. You’re out there all alone and you have to think for yourself and it’s mentally challenging for sure.”
The individual and the team aspect can be blurred at times in the team format used in the college game, Smith said. For obvious reasons doubles keeps the team feel pretty well but she said singles can go either way.
“It’s team but at the same time it’s all individual,” Smith said. “We have to go out there to win our matches but we’re aware that it’s going to help our team win.”
As for the team it will have one more match against Idaho State before playing at the Big West Conference Tournament in California.
“We could beat any team down there,” Smith said. “We definitely have the talent to.”
But if not there’s always year three for the pair, which could get a little scary for the competition.
-krn@cc.usu.edu