Jennifer Griego is a senior tennis player at Notre Dame Prep who plans to attend TCU to study biochemistry with hopes of becoming a physician's assistant.
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School, spring sport and position/event: Notre Dame Preparatory, Varsity Tennis
Awards or recognitions you’ve received while playing in high school: Player of the Year, 2019; Team Captain, 2020
How long have you been playing your sport? 6 years
Why did you choose to play your sport? It is a sport I can play my whole life and something I can play with my family. I have played on and off since I was a little kid, but became really devoted when I was in sixth grade. It is a sport that I loved since I would always have the ball and I was able to be constantly playing when I was on the court.
What is your favorite personal sports memory from your playing career? With my high school team I have had too many memories to count, but my favorite has to be the last match I ever played. In the moment I had no idea that was going to be my last match but looking back it was probably the best match to end on. I was playing doubles with a freshman on the team and the last game we played my partner, Ari, aced our opponents about three times. On the last point, I hit an overhead to win the match. This is my favorite memory because winning on an overhead has been my goal since I started playing and the fact that I won my last match that way was very fulfilling.
Who has impacted you the most along your sports journey? Why? The coach that I have had since I started playing tennis, Jerry Keever, has influenced me the most. I have learned most of what I know from him and has been with me through my whole tennis career. He has helped me develop my skills and pushed me to work hard in order to become the devoted player I am today.
What are you going to miss most about high school sports? I’m going to miss everything. Coach Dinges who has been with me my whole high school career. I’m going to miss coach pushing us and working us hard in the gym and on the court. I’m going to miss the bus rides, the practices, the matches and the workouts. Most of all I’m going to miss the girls, my teammates. I spent most of my time in high school with these girls and I have found some of my best friends. The fact that I will never play tennis with these girls again hurts my heart so much, especially because I never got to enjoy every last moment of my final season that ended too soon.
What comes next for you after high school? I will be attending Texas Christian University in the fall, and I hope to continue my tennis career playing club at TCU. I will be majoring in biochemistry and on a track to become a physicians assistant. I am not sure what field of medicine I will end up in, but I want to focus on patient care wherever I go.
What advice would you give to the underclassmen? While this sounds like a cliche, I would say to cherish every moment. Don’t take the wins, the losses or anything in high school for granted. I never expected high school to end so soon for me and I wish I could go back take it all in just one last time. You never know what could happen in high school, so take in every moment like it’s the last you’re going to get.
Editor's Note: The Independent is seeking to highlight senior spring athlete's whose seasons were cut short because of the COVID-19 pandemic. You can email News Services Editor Josh Martinez at jmartinez@newszap.com for a questionnaire to fill out for a future senior spotlight.
