It was an out-of-this-world fall season for the Loper tennis team. They saw plenty of success winning three of their matches and performing well at Creighton’s Bluejay Invitational and the ITA Central Regionals in Oklahoma.
Freshman Alexis Bernthal has emerged onto the scene seeing plenty of action as she has transitioned from high school to college life.
“I think having tennis and coming as a student-athlete made it a lot easier for me,” Bernthal said. “The UNK staff, my professors, my adviser, coach Scott — they’ve all been super helpful.”
The freshman from Boulder, Colorado, has played well in her first few matches as a Loper, especially at the Bluejay Invitational. She beat two Creighton players and a UNO player to win in the “B” singles flight.
“It was really cool because I actually talked to the Creighton and UNO coaches too, and they didn’t want me,” Bernthal said. “Going back and beating their players — that was really cool.”
Shafer knew that Bernthal was very disciplined in her approach to the game. He sees a lot of potential in what she can do for the program.
“I know she’s not even close to her ceiling, and that’s what you want from a freshman, is someone who you can see they still have an opportunity to get better, and that makes it very exciting,” Shafer said.
The fall season can be crucial to getting to know some of the new players on the team. Although it is a short season in the fall, players get good experience and get to show their talent on the court.
“We have five new girls on the team,” said Scott Shafer, the UNK tennis coach. “Fall is very important for me to get to know them, (get to know) their strengths on the court and maybe, more importantly, is what are the things they need to improve.”
The team features five international players — all from different countries. A lot of research goes into finding players from all over the world.
“There are so many international men and women interested in coming to the states and getting an education and playing tennis,” Shafer said. “A lot of them make videos of them on the court and oftentimes they have agents.”
Shafer does a lot of research when it comes to recruiting. It takes a surplus of information to know just how a student-athlete will fit in at UNK and on the team.
“I receive emails and messages from different agents who want to tell me about a certain player,” Shafer said. “When I really narrow in on someone I’m interested in, I ask a lot more questions of the student-athletes themselves as well as the agent. I try to give myself the best picture of their level before they arrive.”
The Lopers will put some offseason work in over the winter. They will take the court once again in the spring on Feb. 12 against Harding.
