Maverick Spotlight: Valerie Bresnahan

Sports editor Kevin Korbel sits down with tennis player Valerie Bresnahan to discuss her route to college tennis

Kevin Korbel
Sports Editor

The women’s tennis team this year has been a team of resilience this season. After struggling with the start the 2017-18 season, the Mavericks have gone on to win two of their last three matches on the season, improving their record to 5-12 on the season, and 4-6 in conference play; just in time for the NSIC tournament this weekend in Minnetonka, MN.

One of the key reasons the team has improved this season has been the play of junior tennis player, Valerie Bresnahan. Bresnahan, who mainly plays doubles on the team, originally had a tough time getting on the team when she graduated from high school.

As a resident, out of St. Peter, MN, she attended and graduated from St. Peter High School back in 2015. Once she graduated, she had dreams of playing for a tennis team while she attended college. While it wasn’t an easy path for Valerie at first, she decided to ultimately gamble on herself, deciding to attend MSU back in 2015 in hopes of walking-on for the tennis team.

From the moment she set foot on campus, she knew deep-down that she made the right decision. A former two-year captain and multi-sport athlete in high school, has now improved her game enough to become not only one of the team’s key doubles players on the team, but also one of the influential leaders on the team.

I asked Bresnahan about her time attending MSU, and about her decision to play for this team where she stated, “MSU has really become like a second home for me. I really enjoy the sport and I knew deep down when I got to campus that this was the best place to continue to play the sport I know and love”.

From smacking serves over the back of the net, to being able to pinpoint her shots on every serve, Bresnahan enjoys how much of a mental sport the game can be. She enjoys how it can be an individual sport, and how she can pick her shots around the court to confuse her opponents, while also having a huge impact on the game at the same time.

As she continues to improve her game through practice and strength training, she hopes to leave in an impact on this sport, even after she graduates from college, “One of the reasons I love this sport is that it’s a lifetime sport. Whenever we play at the bubble in St. Peter, I always see older, retired people playing the sport, and I hope to continue to be in that type of playing shape as I get older”.

I asked Valerie about here goals for the rest of the season, and onward after she graduates, in which she responded, “My goals are always to continue to improve on my game, and to be more aggressive while playing the sport, because sometimes I feel like I can be too polite while playing”.

After she graduates, she hopes to continue to be a part of the sport in some shape or form, whether it’s coaching the sport or to continue playing whenever she can. As she continues her

playing career, Valerie hopes to conclude her college career in emphatic fashion, whether it’s winning conference, or playing to the best of her capability.

Photo: (Reporter Archive)