Upcoming Event: Women's Tennis versus ITA Regional Championship on October 16, 2025
Women's Tennis
vs ITA Regional Championship
To The Net With Kathy Sell
10/10/2000 1:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Kathy Sell
Senior
Diary Entry No. 8
While hand washing a week’s worth of dishes tonight in my kitchen (I have no
dishwasher), I realized that I haven’t written a diary entry for a few
weeks. I started writing about our win over Florida (huge smile) last week,
but decided to start over because I couldn’t justify the impact of that win
on paper. So as my hands started wrinkling from the hot water and soap I
decided that I would write more personally in my last few diaries rather
than reporting exclusively on our results.
After all, sports information does a great job of covering our results, so I figure it might be more interesting to share some different information in the diary. I’ve always been afraid of diaries anyway because mine was stolen in fifth grade and read by a classmate at the boys’ soccer practice after school. It would have been okay had I not declared having a crush on one boy while I was supposedly ‘going out with’ his twin brother.
Anyway, since I was doing dishes I was thinking about food,eating and my mind starting wandering to the many meals I have shared with my team in the past four years. Eating out with a group of people can be very telling of personalities, but eating out with the same people, three meals a day, on every trip we take (which is often) can be even more telling.
Let’s take the drinks, for example. Every time we eat out, Jamie orders an ice tea, Farley a Coke (or coffee, if it’s early; and it’s a pot, not just a cup), Hillary gets lemonade or a smoothie, Megan orders water (it HAS to have a lemon), Ioana, Ansley, and Prim will order a milk (only if it’s skim) or a diet Coke, Katie will order the occasional Coke, Amanda drinks milk or water, and I usually stick with water, but will mix it up if a teammate orders something that sounds good.
The few unwritten rules we have when we eat out are: 1) Order whatever you want, 2) As long as you are willing to share bites with everyone, 3) Desserts are open for anyone to pick at and make sure you ask for lots of extra spoons, 4) No cell phones at the table, 5) No getting up in the middle of dinner to go shopping, and 6) You have to ask for a special order (either sauce on the side, no sauce, or something else). No one ever just orders what the menu offers.
I usually get in trouble for stacking my plates after I eat. I think it helps the waiters out so they don’t have to reach over and do all the work. My teammates think it is rude of me to do it because I’m insinuating that they don’t do their job right. What do you think?
Our dinners always end with something sweet. For the first month of the year, I gave up eating all sweets. I was going to do this for the whole year. Then I came back from a trip and my roommate had a huge bowl of cookie dough in the fridge. Later that day I framed a napkin she had given me that says, "I said no to desserts, but they just won’t listen." It is still on my dresser.
A lot of interesting subjects are brought up in dinner conversations, which I will leave out for now, but I can tell you that I will definitely miss all the team dinners and other meals that I have shared with the Duke tennis team. They might seem unimportant at the table, but when I sit back and think of all funny things that have been said and all the desserts that have been demolished by the eight of us, I have to smile (ALMOST as huge as the win over Florida).
Diary Entry No. 7
We returned from our spring break trip Sunday night around 1:00am. The last time I reported, we were heading from Tucson to Seattle. Seattle was great. I love the Pacific Northwest. We were really lucky the first day there because we had some sunshine, but more importantly, no rain. We walked around the city most of the day, sightseeing, shopping, eating, and people watching. Seattle is fun place to people watch. And there are more Starbuck's in that city than I have EVER seen.
By the time we met for dinner, the whole team had several bags to their name and we had all discovered the "free make-over day" in Nordstroms hosted by one of the world's leading make-up artists (an assistant to Bobbi Brown).
Every other day in Seattle, it rained. Our match against the University of Washington was moved indoors. We showed up ready to go, fired up, and our results showed that. Washington was a very good team, so we were very pleased with our results (6-1). We have experimented with some new doubles teams lately which has proven that within our team we have several different combinations that could work to win matches. I think that is an attribute to our team chemistry and ability to work together in many different situations.
This morning, while still tired from the time change, we all met at 7:00am to volunteer at a homeless shelter. We split tasks between us and made breakfast for about 80 people. I was officially in charge of "pouring the pancake batter onto the griddle". Ansley, Hillary, and Amanda were the official "pancake flippers". It was actually harder than it sounds; there were strict rules for how big the pancakes could be. We got the hang of it after about 50 pancakes. Katie, Prim, Yo, and Megan washed dishes, served the food, and helped organize the rest of the meal. This was part of our team's effort to do one volunteer outreach activity each semester. Never mind that Hillary and Katie took the 45 minute scenic route to get to the shelter (a five-minute drive away), we had a great time.
This week we host William & Mary on Thursday at 1:30. The match will be held outside, or inside if the weather does not hold up. We were defeated by William & Mary last year in Williamsburg. This year, we are looking for some different results on our home turf.
GO DUKE!
"you hit what you head for"
Diary Entry No. 6
Although being on the Duke tennis team does not afford us indulgent spring break trips to the Caribbean or Hawaii, we have flown across the country to spend our week off of school in Tucson, Arizona and Seattle, Washington. It is nice being out of town knowing that, this time, classes are not going on without us. We have two matches to play against the University of Arizona and the University of Washington. In between matches and practice, we are trying to catch up on schoolwork, do some shopping, explore local tourist attractions, and fighting over who gets shotgun on the next van ride (Megan ALWAYS wins). There are also the inevitable funny things we do that keep us laughing all the time. It would actually be tough for me to pick a better group to spend spring break with because my teammates can make me laugh at any time of day.
Prim Siripipat, a sophomore on the team, is definitely running home with the trophy for making me laugh on this trip. On our way out to dinner with the team, our coaches, and Jamie's (the head coach) parents the other night, I was in line behind Prim and Jamie's mom to climb into the van. Little did I know what was about to happen? As Prim climbed into the van a pair of underwear fell on the ground from an unknown location. Mrs. Ashworth climbed over the underwear into the van; I do not think she saw it. I panicked, looking around me to see who was there, wondering if I should let it lie, or if I should pick it up. I turned to my teammate, Yo, who had also seen the incident. "Should we pick it up?" I said.
After consulting with Yo, I decided I couldn't let it remain on the ground for the bellman and other guests to wonder about it, so I swooped it up, jumped into the van and secretly (although it's no longer a secret now) handed it back to Prim. It was very funny, she couldn't figure out where it had come from. We decided it must have stuck on to her jacket after doing laundry.
The very next day, I was practicing with Prim at the University of Arizona courts. During a water break, we looked over the first court and noticed someone playing that wasn't there when we started practice. She looked familiar but we were too far away to tell who it was. I asked Prim if she could tell who was playing. She didn't know, but by then, I had an idea of who it was. I told Prim, "Do you know who I think that is?" She said, "I don't know, but she definitely is NOT a tennis player."
Sure enough, I was right about my guess and it turned out to be tennis legend, Martina Navratilova. For the rest of the day we gave Prim a hard time about it and said, "You know, for a NON-tennis player, she's pretty good" It was very funny.
Today we went to the Tucson Museum and saw local animals, plants, and landscape. The scenery was beautiful. I have been especially fascinated by the millions of cacti that inhabit this area. I also saw a Javelina for the first time, which looks similar to a pig, but as I learned today, humans are more closely related to chimpanzees than javelinas are to pigs.
We also walked through a hummingbird aviary and ducked from the little birds that flew past our heads every few seconds. I never knew that hummingbirds flapped their wings 80 times per second and that their hearts beat 1260 times per minute.
We play our match tomorrow and then fly out to Seattle where I'm sure more adventures are to come. We always seem to come across interesting things when the team is together. As far as tennis is going, everyone is feeling healthy again after some minor injuries. We are ready to head into our upcoming matches that will lead us into April. It's very hard to believe we are already in the middle of March. Can someone slow the time down a little bit?
Diary Entry No. 5
Last week in Madison, Wisconsin our team had an opportunity to compete against the best teams and players in the country. Every year we use this tournament, the National Indoor Championships, to determine where we are and what we need to improve upon for the rest of the season as far as mental, physical, and technical training.
We are a very talented group of players, but as a team we are still learning and growing together. In the semifinals we lost to University of Georgia, the defending National Champions. I think the lesson I learned from the match was that "the best tools don't make a good carpenter." On paper, we have better players, but as a team we did not play aggressive enough to win the match. I give a lot of credit to the Georgia players for their fight though.
We are in a great position now to use the tournament experience to work into the last few months of the season. We are becoming closer and better friends with all the traveling we have been doing. I love this team because there are eight different personalities when you put us all together, but we always find something to laugh about, even if it is at each other.
Ansley has earned herself the nickname, 'Snooze', because she fades out of consciousness every so often and stares into space. To me it looks like she is trying to sneak in a nap with her eyes open, like she hits the snooze button for a few seconds. Megan would get mad if I explained her nicknames, Ioana has started calling herself 'Yo' now after three years of hearing it from us, and Hillary responds to 'Shells.' For an explanation, just ask what her favorite kind of pasta is, but make sure you stand back, cause she gets pretty excited...
This week we are enjoying two days off and our first full week and weekend at Duke of the semester. We have our first home match this weekend against Virginia Commonwealth at the Sheffield Indoor Center on Sunday. Go Duke!
The men's team also hosts matches next week inside. Thanks to all the parents and fans who supported us in Madison, it makes a big difference!
Diary Entry No. 4
We are heading into our team competition again this weekend with a trip to Maryland. We will face Ohio State and Indiana, both strong teams that could push us. In preparation for our National Indoor tournament which takes us to Madison, Wisconsin next week, we are hoping to get the best from our opponents this weekend so that we will be well prepared to face the nation's top teams.
Ansley and I returned from Dallas as we played in the National Individual Indoors last week. At the beginning of the tournament I felt good in practice and had an intuition that I would do well. I knew that I wanted to have some good battles and had to find a way to stay out there on the courts.
I eventually fell to my teammate, Ansley, in the semifinals after pulling out a few good wins in the earlier rounds. Although it was a good week of tennis for Duke in Dallas, it was really good to get back to team practice and to be surrounded by the whole team again.
During season when we are traveling five of six weekends, our team becomes much closer because we are spending most of our time together. This is when we build relationships that will lead into and carry us through NCAAs at the end of our season.
It is my favorite part of the year and I wouldn't give up the relationships I have made over the years with my teammates for any other experience at Duke. It's funny thinking back to realize that some of my favorite memories are sitting in airports waiting for flights or hanging out in someone's hotel room to catch an episode of 'Friends'.
My parents have been able to come watch me play the past few weeks and it has been great to have their support. I am the youngest of four children and the last to be playing tennis, so they are making an effort to catch some of my final collegiate matches. In their spare time they are trying to keep up with my sister's wedding plans. She is getting married in April, the week between ACCs and NCAAs. To set the date, my sister called Jamie, the head tennis coach, to see if it was okay for me to miss a few days at school.
Fortunately, he said it was okay. (Thanks, Jamie)
The next stretch of matches will be a test of where we are in terms of training and mental focus. This is a great opportunity for us to make an impression on other teams and to work together as a team to get better as our season progresses. The best test will come in competition.
"This time. Not next time. Not next year. This year. Now."
Diary Entry No. 3
We returned from Orlando, Florida last night where both the men's and women's teams played the adidas Tennis Classic the past five days. You might be thinking it was hot and sunny, but at 6:30am when we were up getting ready for 8:00 a.m. matches, it was anything but. I ate pancakes for breakfast four days in a row, so it wasn't ALL that bad.
Duke was represented very well and brought home about five trophies, which in this case, were various adidas products given by the representatives who ran the tournament. The tournament directors, Sophie and Ryan, flew in from Portland, Oregon to celebrate tennis and adidas at this tournament in which all adidas-sponsored teams were invited.
It was especially fun for me because these were the people I worked for last summer when I was an intern. It was good to catch up on how things were going in Portland and I thought about the time I spent there and the all the great people I met and spent time with. After I graduate and pursue professional tennis, I would like to move out to Portland for a few years.
As a senior, thoughts of post-graduation occur all the time, but my mind is usually occupied by what is going on with my team. I do not think my 'leadership' philosophy has changed much over the four years I have been here, but there is definitely something to be said of the urgency of a final season. One thing I have learned as a senior is that I have to be willing to continue building the program, in addition to the specific team that is representing the program this year.
It's tough because sometimes I have to be the one to stand up and say something that might upset certain people on the team in order to protect the best interest of the program. We have a lot of values and rules tied in with our team that were set with the intention of giving ourselves the best chance to maximize our potential throughout the year and at the end at the National Championships.
Thus far, we have a very strong team both on and off the court. Freshmen, Amanda and Ansley, are paving a reputation for themselves in their first season and my sophomore and junior teammates, Katie, Yo, Hillary, and Prim continue to be awesome contributors to the Duke team both on and off the court.
As for the seniors, Megan and I are simply trying to do whatever it takes to achieve our goal of being part of the first women's tennis team at Duke to win a National Championship.
Diary Entry No. 2
After returning from break and just five days of practice, our team is preparing to leave for our first dual match against Notre Dame this weekend. There is an air of excitement around the team waiting for our season to begin.
In preparation for the season, Katie Granson and I spent eight days in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at a tournament called the Milwaukee Classic. We were fortunate to be housed by an incredible family and had a great week getting to know them and their children in between playing matches and practicing.
Katie and I made it to the quarterfinals and semifinals of singles, respectively, and we won the doubles tournament, beating a team from Illinois in the finals. The tournament drew a crowd of several hundred people for the finals and we had a great time playing in the large auditorium that was previously a site for the US Davis Cup.
Once this weekend comes, we will be on the road for five weekends in a row. We have a demanding travel schedule this season, but we are prepared and ready to set the pace for the next few months. GO DUKE!!
Diary Entry No. 1
This is a great year for duke tennis. I am equally excited about the men's and women's teams' opportunities between now and may-2001. It's hard to believe that three years ago, as a freshman, my team played next to an ongoing concert of construction noises every practice and if it happened to rain, we either drove 25 minutes to an indoor club in Chapel Hill or we crowded into the IM building (which we nicknamed the Icky Mustache). Today, the IM building remains hidden behind two incredible new facilities, one of which is the Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center, and the only reason we go over to Chapel Hill is to dominate the Tar Heels. I think all the Duke athletes and coaches have been rewarded with some amazing gifts in the past several years and the athletic department is moving in an exciting direction.
In preparation of my final year at Duke, I took two months off from playing tournaments and experienced the world away from tennis, through an internship with adidas in Portland, Oregon. I worked in the tennis promotions and footwear marketing department alongside some great people. My experience reinforced my belief that adidas is the best sports brand company in the world. On one of my first days, I was walking around the office and saw a poster of a former Duke soccer player, Jay Heaps. It said "quality" on top of the photo in which Jay wore a Duke soccer jersey. It was cool to see a respect for Jay and Duke athletics on the other side of the country, especially coming from a company that is highly respected in the world of sports.
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I will leave this entry reporting on the current status of the women's tennis team. This past weekend at a tournament hosted by UNC, six out of six players came home to Duke with first place trophies. I did not play, as a result of a back injury, but it was great to see my teammates playing. We have a very strong team, especially with the addition of two incredible freshman. With Jen McCollum's help in the training room, I am healthy again and will start practicing this week. We head to Los Angeles Friday and will spend our fall break battling at the All-American, one of our biggest tournaments of the year. I hope to have a good week of tough practice and preparation so that I can get back to my teammates' level of fitness and mental toughness. Like soccer player, Nii-Amar Amamoo's great quote, "The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender." Go Duke!!!
Players Mentioned
PLAYER
/ Women's TennisPLAYER
/ Women's TennisPLAYER
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Jame Ashworth Post Match vs. Auburn
Saturday, May 10
Ellie Coleman Post Match vs. FAU
Saturday, May 03
Jamie Ashworth Post Match vs. FAU
Saturday, May 03
