Smart and disciplined, Memorial High School sophomore Macie Elliott has everything it takes to make another drive to the girls’ state tennis tournament. This year, however, she hopes to bring her Tigers’ teammates along for the ride.

Elliott will be joined by freshman Jasmine Lee, who will move into the No. 2 singles slot. Junior Liz Wilm, who played No. 1 singles two years ago, will return at No. 1 doubles.

Elliott and Wilm helped lead Memorial to their eighth Southern Indiana Athletic Conference title in a row last year and a semistate berth.

“It’s great to have Jasmine Lee; she’ll be a great addition,” Elliott said.

Elliott said she plays with Lee nearly every day, in or out of season.

“She’s a really consistent baseliner,” Elliott said. “She’s really a good player. She’s consistent and still aggressive.”

They hope to spark Memorial to a berth in the team state finals.

“That would be a great accomplishment since we weren’t able to get there last year,” Elliott said.

Individually, she lost in last year’s state semifinals, then won the third-place match to finish 25-2.

“I’ve always been really competitive,” Elliott said. “That’s what really drives me to stay focused to be the best. I try to get better every single day on the court.”

Ray Trapp, who came out of retirement to coach Memorial’s boys last fall, is also coaching the Tigers’ girls this spring. Trapp, who coached North’s boys for 18 years and the Huskies girls for eight before retiring in 2006, said there are some major differences in boys’ and girls’ players.

“Girls are very interested in having a nice uniform and sometimes the boys aren’t real interested in their uniform,” he said. “I have to get them to wear their team uniform.”

Another difference is the weather is usually hot or mild in the fall while it can be cold and nasty in the spring. But he said his girls rarely complain.

As far as Elliott is concerned, Trapp said she has improved her serve and has a complete game.

“She just needs to keep playing at the level she’s playing,” he said. “She needs to continue to work hard. She could be right back at the state finals, I think.”

Memorial will open its season in the 32-team Deco Turf Tournament, featuring teams from Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee, at several sites in Louisville, Ky.

The Tigers’ first match will be against Fort Thomas (Ky.) Highlands at 4:30 p.m. CDT on Friday at Louisville St. Xavier.

While Trapp is not settled on his entire lineup, he said sophomore Rachel Swartwood will play No. 3 singles in the season-opening tourney.

After losing Jessica Huhnke to graduation, Castle hopes Rachel Bottorff will be a top contender as she moves from No. 2 to No. 1 singles.

From www.courierpress.com