Causing a racquet and coming together

As the sun sets over Crossroads middle school, 13 tennis players sit on a small set of bleachers with four rows. They laugh, smile, and cheer for the fourteenth player finishing up her match.

Even if they want to leave after they finish their own match, “We stay and watch that last person play,” sophomore Lexi Martin said.

A ball went into the net and while the player becomes discouraged about the move she made, next to her she heard chanting, “It’s okay, you did great!”

This phrase is quite commonly heard around the tennis court. “It’s a big phrase for our team,” assistant varsity coach Sarah Gammans said.

Despite her earlier miss, the player makes a good shot, a shot that won the match. Suddenly, a rush of screaming girls wearing red jerseys entered the court. The team huddled up, everyone hugged and congratulated each other on their efforts from that day.

“Even if they lose, we stay optimistic about the whole thing,” Martin said.

Although only two people play at a time, the entire team is still very tight-knit. This closeness comes from being together for over two hours a day for almost every day of the week.

“The team got close really quickly,” Gammans said. “And they came into an environment that was not personally competitive so that drama was left out of it and they just grew.”

While competition between the girls is alive, it is all healthy and for the betterment of the group.

“We all just want to improve and get closer with one another,” Martin said. “I don’t feel the need to have a specific number of wins as long as I knew we’ve been playing our hardest.”

The overall closeness of the team is not dependent on the final score.

“When you’re having the last practice and they’re sad [about the season being over] that’s how I know that we’ve had a successful season,” Gammans said.