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06/27/2019 12:00 AMRebecca Cockley started her journey in tennis through a family influence. From the moment she stepped on the court, Rebecca has worked hard and stayed diligent in order to grasp the aspects of the game in a short amount of time.
Rebecca recently completed her career as a three-sport athlete at Morgan, where she served as a senior captain for the girls’ tennis team. Last fall, Rebecca played goalie on girls’ soccer squad and helped the Huskies capture the Shoreline Conference crown. In the winter, Rebecca was a captain for the Morgan girls’ fencing team.
Rebecca was introduced to tennis by her family when she was in 7th grade. This spring, Rebecca teamed up with fellow senior Melanie Coretti to play No. 1 doubles for the Huskies, who are coached by her mother Sue Cockley. Rebecca and Coretti notched six victories in the top doubles slot.
“I’ve learned the game so quickly through practice. Some kids don’t stick with the sport, because it’s not one that’s easy to pick up right away,” says Rebecca. “I’ve been practicing all through the summer, and my family helped me get the hang of it.”
Rebecca says that she’s sharpened her skills between the baselines through her work on the soccer pitch and the fencing strip. She’s also picked up the key element of figuring out how to stay on an even keel during her matches.
“Being a keeper for soccer, I used my hands a lot. And then with fencing, I used a lot of hand-eye coordination and shuffled. All of that has helped me condition myself for tennis with short spurts of running,” Rebecca says. “Our coach tells us that tennis is 90 percent mental, so you help yourself when you don’t get down on yourself.”
Rebecca was still fine-tuning the fundamentals when she began her tennis career at Morgan. However, Rebecca learned a lot about the sport by competing alongside her teammates, while both giving and receiving a ton of support.
“I gained more confidence on the court over the years. I was still learning the techniques as a freshman. I became more confident through practicing with the team and being on the court,” says Rebecca. “I also learned that having a supporting partner in doubles is big. The support has a lot to do with building up the confidence and skill level.”
Rebecca led Morgan in tandem with fellow senior captain Beatrice Atengco this year. Rebecca loved joining forces with Atengco to help a young bunch of the Huskies make great progress during the campaign.
“Being a captain was probably one of my favorite experiences, because I got to see the team improve together,” Rebecca says. “It was an amazing year because of how well Beatrice and I worked together. It was great to be a role model to the younger teammates and support them.”
Coach Cockley says that Rebecca was a strong captain who took pride in being a positive influence throughout the Morgan community.
“What makes Rebecca a strong athlete and teammate is pure determination. She shows this both on the courts, field, gym floor, and always in the classroom,” Cockley says. “Rebecca knows what she wants to accomplish in sports and life and simply does what needs to be done, always giving 110 percent. She knows how to talk and work with her teammates, getting the best out of them, and this is shown by how they react with her, not wanting to let her down.”
This fall, Rebecca will be attending Simmons College in Boston, where she’s going into the nursing program. As she looks back on her time at Morgan, Rebecca feels thankful that she learned so many life lessons by competing for the Huskies.
“As an athlete, I was physically prepared for tennis, but the team helped me become more focused,” says Rebecca. “Being on the team taught me to forget the bad days, and being a captain helped me gain leadership skills and learn time management.”