University of Georgia Athletics
King Coming On Strong
September 01, 2015 | Women's Tennis
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By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Tennis seasons don't get a whole lot better than the one Georgia's Hannah King enjoyed in 2014-15. That it was her freshman year with the Bulldogs makes her achievements even more impressive.
Add in her back story, which includes four shoulder surgeries and serious questions about whether the left-hander would have to give up the game, and King's first season with the Bulldogs looks even better. And as she and the Bulldogs prepare for their fall schedule, which begins Sept. 14, with the Puerto Rico Challenge, it appears she's just getting started.
"Making a comeback, there's always going to be some rust," Georgia coach Jeff Wallace said. "Sometimes it's physical rust and sometimes it's mental rust. I think that she's really, step by step, done a great job of physically getting ready to play, mentally getting ready to play and then just going out there and competing.
"She's always been a great competitor and she'll always be a great competitor. Sometimes it's just creating that belief system that, I'm here and I'm back and I can do this, and I'm going to pass any level that was behind me and reach new heights and continue to excel at this sport."
King, a Dunwoody, Ga., native, who was born in Athens, played her best in the biggest moments of her freshman season. She won 10 of her 11 SEC matches, she was 5-0 against ranked opponents, she won her final 11 completed matches -- and she had the rare distinction of being named to the all-tournament teams at the ITA National Team Indoors, the SEC tournament and the NCAA Championships.
"Coming into my freshman year, I didn't have many expectations because towards the end of my junior career I had tons of injuries and really wasn't on a consistent playing schedule," King said. "So I think my main focus was on getting on the court as much as I could. And once I earned my consistent spot in the lineup, I was just focusing on going out there and getting a point for the team. And with that mindset I was able to accomplish some cool things."
Because of her recurring shoulder injuries and subsequent surgeries, as well as months resting and recuperating, King missed much of her final years in the juniors. Those are crucial years, when players' bodies are maturing and they start to become the athletes and players they will be as adults.
As King was going through the surgeries and difficult rehabs, spending less and less time playing the game she loved, she began to wonder if her promising career might be coming to an abrupt end.
"There were multiple times when I stormed off the court and was like, `Mom, I'm quitting,' or I told my coaches that I wasn't coming back -- they were very emotional decisions and heat-of-the-moment kinds of things," she said. "But once I took my time and really thought about it, I realized that I couldn't step away. I just loved it too much."
Eventually King's shoulder was fixed and she began playing again, this time with a new perspective and appreciation for the game.
"Every time I step out on the court I try to have a good attitude, and something I take a lot of pride in is my work ethic," she said. "Every time I go out there, the one thing people can expect from me is that I'm going to give 100 percent. Because I know that it can be the last ball I hit. That's a cool feeling to have."
Perhaps King's best win of her freshman season came in the Ole Miss Fall Invitational last October, when she beat Vanderbilt's Astra Sharma, 7-5, 6-3. Sharma, then a redshirt freshman, went on to go 18-2 playing No. 2 singles for the national champion Commodores and was the NCAAs MVP.
"That was a heck of a match and I think that gave her some confidence to boost her forward," Wallace said.
King was just one of the Dogs' impact freshman last season. Five rookies (King, Ellen Perez, Kennedy Shaffer, Mariana Gould and Laura Patterson) were on the roster and the quintet posted a combined record of 90-33 in singles play during individual and dual match play. Perez, Shaffer and King were in the singles lineup when Georgia advanced to the NCAA semifinals.
Playing the bulk of her matches in the No. 5 spot, King went 18-3 in dual play and 25-5 overall. The only Bulldog to win more matches was Caroline Brinson, now a junior, who went 33-8 overall and 15-3 at No. 6 singles.
"I think last year was really important and playing in the lineup spot that I did, at No. 5, I think that was really important, because every match that I got was an opportunity to do well," King said. "I kind of had to retrain my brain and retrain my tendencies and everything to learn how to win again.
"Growing up, when I went on the court it was, I'm going to win this match because I know what it takes. Starting off in college, it was more walking on the court and hoping to win. But as the season went on I was able to retrain that and I'm no longer just hoping to win; I'm expecting to win. ... I had to relearn how to win again and now that that's back, it's just improving on the little things that can only take me higher."
John Frierson is a staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Hall of Fame at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. You can follow him on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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