{"id":4343,"date":"2022-10-28T20:02:19","date_gmt":"2022-10-28T20:02:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/?p=4343"},"modified":"2025-02-10T10:38:50","modified_gmt":"2025-02-10T15:38:50","slug":"tennis-a-season-to-remember","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/2022\/10\/28\/tennis-a-season-to-remember\/","title":{"rendered":"Tennis: A Season to Remember"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col{padding-right:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);padding-bottom:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);padding-left:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);}.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col,.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{border-top-left-radius:0px;border-top-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-left-radius:0px;}.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col{column-gap:var(--global-kb-gap-sm, 1rem);}.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;}.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col > .aligncenter{width:100%;}.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{opacity:0.3;}.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f{position:relative;}@media all and (max-width: 1024px){.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}@media all and (max-width: 991px){.kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-column kadence-column4343_599dfc-1f dynamic-main-col\"><div class=\"kt-inside-inner-col\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">For the Wilmington University women\u2019s tennis team, the 2021\u201322 season was one of unprecedented achievement.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Made up of seven international players \u2014 two from Spain, two from England, and one each from Austria, South Africa, and the Netherlands \u2014 the team broke several school records on its&nbsp;way to winning multiple championships. Not incidentally, the players also excelled in the classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In conference play, the Wildcats went 9-0 for the first time in school history and won the Central Atlantic Athletic Conference (CACC) regular season championship and the Conference Tournament&nbsp;Champion-ship, which earned them an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II East Regional Championship this past spring.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Individual awards abounded.&nbsp;Coach Troy Donato&nbsp;was named both the 2021 CACC Coach of the year and the USTA Delaware Region&nbsp;College Coach of the Year. Freshman&nbsp;Neus Ramos Moreno&nbsp;won Conference Player of the Year honors, and three players \u2014&nbsp;Begona Gomar Perez,&nbsp;&nbsp;lentina Ivankovic, and&nbsp;Jess Purdy&nbsp;\u00ad\u2014 were named second-team All-Conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In May, in the East Regional #1 Bracket at Delcastle Tennis Center, the team defeated No. 5 Le Moyne, 4-0, to earn a trip to the NCAA Division II National Championships in Altamonte Springs, Florida. They thus became just the third team in Wilmington University Athletics\u2019 NCAA era to win a regional tournament, joining the 2012 and 2015 golf programs and the 2015 baseball team.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Florida, where they were seeded 14th among \u201cthe sweet 16,\u201d the Wildcats lost to No. 3, the University of Indianapolis, but Donato says the trip was \u201camazing\u201d and his team was \u201csuper competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSo many coaches and officials and other players came up to me afterward and said they were shocked that we were just the 14th seed,\u201d he says. \u201cWe lost, 4-0, but most of the rallies were anywhere from 10 to 15 shots \u2014 it wasn\u2019t like we were being blown off the court. The biggest takeaway from the trip is that we are not far off from the top teams in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Donato, who was hired in July of 2019, coached the team to three victories in the fall, but then COVID terminated the spring season after just two matches. The coach made the best of the shutdown by hosting meetings on Zoom and WhatsApp with the team, who all live in a group house that\u2019s within walking distance of the main campus. He says these virtual get-togethers helped bond the team and provided impetus for the stellar season that followed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The coach is quick to share credit for the 17-4 2021\u201322 overall record. He credits his \u201cmentor,\u201d University of Delaware Director of Tennis&nbsp;Pablo Montana, with helping him recruit international players. And he calls his assistant coach,&nbsp;Boubacar Toure, \u201cthe heart and soul of the team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve never been to Europe,\u201d Donato says, \u201cso I don\u2019t really know what it\u2019s like there, but Boubacar does. He is someone that the girls can relate to. He finds a way to bring a piece of home to them. He\u2019s a nice bridge between me and the girls.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Donato says other Wildcat coaches, such as men\u2019s soccer\u2019s&nbsp;Nick&nbsp;Papanicolas, have been generous with their counsel. The Athletics Department also gets kudos. \u201cThey&nbsp;support us with anything we need to do well,\u201d he says, citing a new ball machine and a team van to take the&nbsp;girls to practice, home matches and nearby away contests.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>The biggest takeaway from the trip is that we are not far off from the top teams in the country.\u201d \u2014 Troy Donato<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>But he gives most of the&nbsp;credit&nbsp;to his players. Calling them \u201chard-working, confident, and like a&nbsp;family,\u201d he believes most of them&nbsp;&nbsp;could play Division I tennis. \u201cThey&nbsp;choose to come here because they know they\u2019re going to be on a team that\u2019s going to be nationally ranked. And if you\u2019re among our top three, you\u2019re most likely going to have a national individual ranking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The last remaining player from his first team is Perez, who received her MBA in May. \u201cI knew Troy from when he was the assistant coach at Goldey-Beacom,\u201d she says, \u201cand I was happy when he came here. He\u2019s very energetic and enthusiastic and he\u2019s always making sure everyone is OK. He knows how to handle situations and bring the team together. We\u2019re all very good friends.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Conference Player of the Year Moreno, who, like Perez, is from Spain, says that when she arrived at WilmU last fall, \u201ceveryone was so nice. Now it feels like home \u2014 like a family.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of Donato, she says: \u201cHe tells us, \u2018if you have any problem, you can call me, I will do my best to help you.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All the bonding has helped not only on the court but also, apparently,&nbsp;in the classroom. The Regional&nbsp;champs posted a 3.69 team GPA, second overall to men\u2019s golf among Wildcat athletic teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Donato\u2019s parents,&nbsp;Patti&nbsp;and&nbsp;Jim Donato, are among a dedicated group of fans who attend home games at the Delcastle Tennis Center (which is co-owned by Toure). Patti Donato, a former Area League coordinator for the Delaware District of the U.S. Tennis Association, says the men\u2019s soccer team and several USTA officials attend most matches, along with some faculty.&nbsp;Malone Harmon, husband of University President&nbsp;Dr. LaVerne Harmon, is a regular, and Dr. Harmon herself attended the Regional Championship match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also at every match is another member of the WilmU tennis family \u2014 the coach\u2019s dog, a female German shepherd mix named Kova, after retired tennis star Anna Kournikova. (His parents\u2019 dog is named Ace, after the tennis term for an untouched serve.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s just a great atmosphere,\u201d Patti Donato says. \u201cThe girls are lovely, just a nice group. They\u2019re good but modest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Donato continues to search for quality players, making extensive use of Zoom and working with agencies in Europe and other parts of the world. He evaluates not only tennis skills, but personalities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI think it\u2019s important to recruit people who want to be here,\u201d he says. \u201cFortunately for us, because of our location between two major cities, we\u2019re able to give them a full experience. For their four years with us, we want to make sure we give them memories for a lifetime. That\u2019s really important. I tell them, when you leave here you\u2019re going to have plenty of stories to tell your parents, your grandparents, your kids.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With two new players coming in from France and Sweden, Donato is looking forward to the 2022\u201323 campaign. \u201cLooks like a great year to me,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u2014Bob Yearick<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For the Wilmington University women\u2019s tennis team, the 2021\u201322 season was one of unprecedented achievement. Made up of seven international players \u2014 two from Spain,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":4344,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[135,143],"tags":[610,606],"class_list":["post-4343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-magazine","category-sports","tag-magazine-fall-2022","tag-womens-tennis"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":135,"label":"MAGAZINE"},{"value":143,"label":"SPORTS"}],"post_tag":[{"value":610,"label":"Magazine Fall 2022"},{"value":606,"label":"Womens Tennis"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Fall22Mag_Tennis-480x480.jpg",480,480,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Rachel Marchione","author_link":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/author\/rachel\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":135,"name":"MAGAZINE","slug":"magazine","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":692,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":431,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":135,"category_count":431,"category_description":"","cat_name":"MAGAZINE","category_nicename":"magazine","category_parent":0},{"term_id":143,"name":"SPORTS","slug":"sports","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":700,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":36,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":143,"category_count":36,"category_description":"","cat_name":"SPORTS","category_nicename":"sports","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":610,"name":"Magazine Fall 2022","slug":"magazine-fall-2022","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1167,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":11,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":606,"name":"Womens Tennis","slug":"womens-tennis","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1163,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4343"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4343\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15354,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4343\/revisions\/15354"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4344"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}