The sophomore singles and doubles player stands out.
After a slow start to the season, the women’s tennis team has picked it up in the month of March winning three of their last four matches. The leading cause for this turnaround comes in part from sophomore Jordan Batey.
Batey went 3-0 in singles and 2-1 in doubles play during the week of March 12-18 for the Owls. The Atlanta native was named Women’s Tennis Performer of the Week by the Atlantic Ten Conference for her performance in matches against Delaware, No. 54 Penn State and Xavier.
“I’ve been really focusing on my game recently,” Batey said. “When I’m on the court I focus on my match and doing what I need to do to win. A lot of girls are good at this level so it really just comes down to mental focus and wanting to win more than the other girl. I have just been extremely mentally tough focusing on each point, one at a time.”
Batey won all three singles matches in straight sets to improve to 4-0 at the No. 3 spot on the season and extended her singles winning-streak to five-straight matches before losing to Penn’s freshman Alex Ion on March 21.
“I have really been keen on staying aggressive because that is what type of player I am,” Batey said. “With that being said I have done much better when recognizing when I have the girl pulled out to come in and close the point. I think that being aware of where I am on the court and where my opponent is, is extremely important.”
Her doubles play with fellow sophomore Alicia Doms has improved as of late and Batey said she expects Doms and herself will become more comfortable on the court together. Currently the duo owns a 6-4 overall record.
“[Doms and I] play extremely well together and I believe we can win our remaining matches,” Batey said.
Even though the Owls as a whole have struggled in the early going of the season, they have been playing well while Batey rides this heat streak. As a team, the Owls are 7-8 overall and 3-1 in A-10 play.
“I think that I have been improving each match, but I think I still have significant progress to make,” Batey said. “I know nothing is going to be perfect but I do feel like there are some things in my game I can make better. The way that the team has played so far I feel like we have done better as the season has gone on.”
When looking at the road ahead, Batey has one major goal for both herself, and her team, which is to continue to win.
“As the season progresses goals are to win all of my remaining matches in singles and doubles,” Batey said.
Looking at the road ahead, Batey will try and build off of her 15-10 singles record when she faces University of Maryland Baltimore County on March 31 at the Student Pavilion. The sophomore said that the key for future success lies within mental toughness.
“I think that we as a team have to remain mentally tough because truly we all have the talent to do well and win our matches it just comes down to believing in ourselves that we can do it and that we are the best,” Batey said.
Kieran McCauley can be reached at kieran.mccauley@temple.edu.
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