Johnson prepares for State Tennis Tournament
By: Ariel Inman
The ball thwacked against the hard green court. It bounced once. Twice. There was no return hit. Kristina Johnson took a deep breath. She had won. Out of respect, she kept the smile off of her face as she shook her opponent’s hand but once she turned to the gate and saw Coach Ladner and her mom smiling at her, she couldn’t restrain it anymore and she burst into tears of joy.
Johnson competed April 18th and 19th in Bryan, TX for the chance to advance to State in tennis. She has been playing tennis since the 1st grade but hadn’t begun playing competitively until four years ago. This win was very special to her because she did not advance to State last year so she plans on making the most out of the opportunity this year.
“In the finals, we were playing best two out of three sets, and I had won the first set 6-2 and was up 5-2, 40-love in the second set, which means that I was one point away from winning,” Johnson said, “At that moment, a sense of calm came over me; I knew that I had worked hard all year for this and that I was going to win. Then my opponent served, I hit a strong return, which she barely returned, and on the next ball I hit a winner to her forehand side, my favorite shot. And that was the end.”
After winning District and Regionals while also advancing to State in her Freshman year, Johnson put a lot of pressure on herself to obtain that same goal her Sophomore year. However, after winning Regionals, Johnson psyched herself out and lost only by a close margin.
“After taking a month or so to recollect and mellow out, in June I began focusing on finding joy in the game of tennis, not just winning,” Johnson said, “I changed my eating habits to be healthier and began an intense workout schedule to prepare myself for this year's season.”
Her efforts have really paid off as evidenced by the fact that she has won 1st in every tournament to date.
“To prepare for state I'm trying to play as much tennis as possible and continue my eating and workout habits,” Johnson said, “For anyone that wants to make it to state in tennis, I would say that they have to first, love playing tennis and second, have the competitive drive inside of them that will accept nothing less than 1st place.”
Johnson has every intention of continuing on her path as a tennis athlete.
“Next year I will be one of the team leaders, so I hope to help the younger members of the team grow as tennis players and learn to love tennis as much as I do,” Johnson said.
The Hudson tennis team is lucky to have Johnson as a future mentor and role model.
“After working so hard this year, the victory was one of the happiest moments of my life,” Johnson said.
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