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Migliorini Crowned SCC’s Best as a Freshman

Julia Migliorini comes from a tennis family and has been playing the sport since she was five, so there were big expectations when she began her career with North Haven girls’ tennis this spring. Julia eclipsed those expectations by putting together a year that most freshmen—or any athlete—can only imagine in their wildest dreams and which culminated with her being crowned the top player in an elite conference.

Julia’s freshman season saw her grab hold of the Indians’ No. 1 singles position and steamroll most opponents on her way to 22-2 record that included two victories at the State Open Championship. Julia’s only defeats came against one of the state’s best players in Amity junior Daphne Kreiger, although Julia did defeat Kreiger in one of their three matches.

Julia wound up collecting a host of accolades as she was named North Haven’s MVP, made All-SCC and All-State, and was chosen for the New Haven Register’s All-Area Team. The crowning jewel of Julia’s freshman campaign came when she was selected as the SCC Division I Player of the Year.

“Looking back, I’m very proud of myself. I never thought I would come this far this year and even beat Daphne. Going into the season, that’s what I dreamed of, but I didn’t think it would actually happen,” Julia says. “So to come out of the season with a successful record, I was happy and I look forward to the future. It makes me want to push harder for next season.”

Julia, whose sisters Alyssa and Emily were also premier singles players for North Haven, had a challenging introduction to the high school ranks when she faced Kreiger in her very first contest. Julia lost 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, but gained confidence from putting Kreiger to the test. Julia then rattled off several victories and was ready for the rematch with Kreiger the following month. Round two was a different story as Migliorini came out swinging and dispatched Kreiger 6-1, 6-4.

“I knew her strengths and weaknesses because I had played her before and I took advantage of that. I attacked her serve more because that isn’t as strong and I hit deep to her because, if you hit near the service line, she would kill it. So my goal was to hit deep and hard to her backhand and that’s basically how I won,” says Julia. “It was one of the best days. I was happy and I was confident after beating her.”

The victory was pivotal in terms of Julia being named the SCC DI Player of the Year and Julia wouldn’t lose again until she dropped a 6-3, 6-4 decision to Kreiger at the State Open. Julia says she was both surprised and elated when she was named her conference’s top player and all the honors she attained this year have her thinking even bigger for the next three seasons—when Julia will definitely have the bull’s-eye on her back.

“The awards were awesome, made me feel great, and boosted my confidence. All this work I’ve put into tennis these past 10 years paid off and I’ll keep trying to improve my game,” she says. “People will want to beat me, of course, and I’ll just have to play my hardest. I’m not the underdog anymore like I was this year. I’ll have to play 10 times better and I’m up for the challenge.”

Julia’s father and head coach, Bob Migliorini, gives an overview as to what enabled Julia to have such a phenomenal freshman season.

“Julia’s footwork is good and, when she’s moving well, she’s tough to beat. She has a really big forehand that generates a lot of power and she hits girls off the court by moving them around and hitting winners to the corners,” Coach Migliorini says. “Julia also has a great court demeanor. She’s very levelheaded and never loses her cool or focus, whether she’s winning or losing. This is a huge attribute of her game.”

Julia continues to hit the court in the summer by playing during the week and competing in United States Tennis Association (USTA) tournaments on weekends. Julia has won five USTA tourneys since the high school season finished, including the Millpond Club Girls’ Tournament last week. She’s currently ranked No. 50 in New England for the Girls’ 18-Under Division.

Julia has designs on playing Division I tennis in college and knows that the experience she gains by facing top-notch opposition throughout the offseason will only increase her chances of reaching that goal.

“I think about that all the time. I want to play Division I tennis,” she says. “Playing tennis is something I love to do and it’s just a matter of how hard I want to work. I think I can do it with hard work.”