After a few days of practice, senior Jordan Batey won her flight at the Saint Joseph’s Invitational on Sept. 29.
“I was actually very impressed by the way she went out there and won all her matches,” senior Alicia Doms said. “I know how well Jordan can play, she is one of the most talented players I have seen. This was shown at the tournament when she could only practice only for three days before the tournament and then won her flight at Saint Joseph’s.”
Batey was unable to start at the beginning of the season because of an ongoing injury.
“I have had Chondromalacia, which is an injury in my knee for about four years now and it fluctuates with level in pain,” Batey said.
Nevertheless, Batey was cleared to compete in the second tournament of the fall season prior to competition.
“I was proud of how I performed, coming off an injury,” Batey said. “I just wanted to fight for every point and do well and not make any excuses for myself but rather do the best I could.”
Batey now believes that this early win will give her the assurance that she can perform at a higher level going forward.
“I am confident that I can do anything I put my mind too,” Batey said. “It is all about playing with heart and wanting the match more than the opponent. It will inevitably drive you to do what’s necessary to win.”
For much of her three years at Temple, Batey has had a consistent doubles partner in Doms, who has noticed a lot of improvement in Batey’s doubles game.
“[Batey] has always been a good player but the biggest change I have seen since freshman year is her doubles game,” Doms said. “I remember that I was not a very good doubles player when I came to Temple my first year. In fact, coach Mauro told me that I was not very good at doubles but that I would get better if I kept practicing and working hard. [Batey] was the same thing, she actually did not even play doubles in the lineup when she was a freshman. Today, everything has changed. We have been playing as number one for the team and we did a very good job last season. We won against many good schools and we really hope to win a lot of doubles matches our senior year playing at our highest level.”
Throughout her tennis career at Temple, Batey has steadily improved, playing higher up in the lineup in singles her junior year according to coach Steve Mauro.
As the regular season nears, Batey hopes to continue to capitalize on her early win and close out her senior year on a positive note.
“I expect to have a winning record of over 20 matches this year in singles and doubles [and] post a winning record as well,” Batey said. “I am looking to use the skills I have learned over the past four years to do well this year.”
Batey understands, however, that she needs to continue to improve as the regular season quickly approaches.
“I want to continue working on staying on the offensive and finishing points at the net,” Batey said. “I have been focusing on staying aggressive that is when I play best, and on my doubles game.”
In two weeks, the regional championship will take place, which signifies the end of the fall season. The regular season will begin in January when Doms believes Batey and the other seniors will be ready to compete in the newly named American Athletic Conference.
“I think she will have a good performance,” Doms said. “We are practicing hard and playing a lot of matches this semester to get ready to beat all teams in our new conference. We are very excited for the upcoming season. Jordan and all seniors will try to make this year a very good year for all our teammates. This is a great opportunity for us, to be able to play against the best schools in the nation. Therefore, we have to take this opportunity and show that we are a very talented team.”
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