Racquets, Confidence and a Scooter

These days, you can spot Claudia Oravcova cruising around the Louisiana Tech campus on her electric scooter.

Cranking it up to 25 mph on a full charge (gotta get up those Ruston hills), she is most likely heading to class in pursuit of her master’s degree. Or she is off to the Neighborhood Walmart to get groceries.

And even though she wrapped up her collegiate tennis career this past April, the Tech Tennis Complex is still a popular destination too.

Four years ago though, she was in Slovakia sitting face-to-face with Amanda Stone on a Skype call. Her desire was to swing her Wilson Burn racquet and study at a university at the same time, something that was not an option in her home country.

Stone had just wrapped up her first season as head coach of the Tech tennis program and was on the virtual recruiting trail, searching for her first signing class.

The story goes that the call did not go very well … or at least that is what Stone thought. “Claudia giggled and looked away from the camera for the most part,” said Stone about that online chat. “I think she may have said hello, okay and goodbye and that was it, the whole call. When I hung up, I thought well, that is not happening.”

To her surprise, the next day when she checked in over text, Oravcova said she was coming to Tech.

The communication was very much the same in person when she arrived in the United States at the airport and got picked up by her new coach.

“I had no idea what she was saying,” said Oravcova. “I thought I was going to be fine with my English, but it was horrible. I would just laugh and smile. And I was shy too.”

The language was not the only struggle for Oravcova as a freshman. So was the tennis, a sport she started playing when she was six. A sport she was stockpiling tournament wins in as a teenager.

“I played the worst tennis of my life my first year,” admitted Oravcova. “I was trying to figure it out the whole year and just could not. Something was wrong. I was overthinking and feeling too much pressure. Everything was just in my head.”

Stone saw it too. “She was always one of our better thinkers on court, but would quickly lose confidence in her shots,” said Stone. “We had a lot of talks about how to overcome this and about believing you can win every match at your position.”

After winning just three dual singles matches as a frosh, Oravcova said she went home over the summer and started preparing mentally for the next year.

“I got back and just turned it on,” said Oravcova. “I was talking to myself every day, practicing every day.”

She started to really talk to others as well … in English.

Other things changed too, like her racquet – switched to a Wilson Ultra – and her confidence.

“Confidence is definitely the area she has grown the most,” said Stone. “This has helped her in all areas of her Tech life I think. She grew from that freshman who did not win and did not speak to being a team captain and putting her name in the record book.”

The losses started turning into victories. She went from a 3-14 singles record in year one to an 8-7 mark in year two. Then an 8-5 record in both year three and year four.

Another change she made … her means of transportation.

“I moved off campus after my first year so I had to walk the whole year,” said Oravcova. “Sometimes you have to walk to weights early in the morning, then back, then to practice, then back. Then we would have meetings.

“When I was back home, my friend was riding around with a scooter and I tried it out,” she said. “I did not have a driver’s license, so the idea of not having to pay gas or insurance was a plus. You just charge it up and go.”

Asked if this was one of the best purchases she has ever made, her one-word reply was, “Yes.”