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06/08/2023 07:54 AMAnna Hansard recollects that she was not much of a sports enthusiast when she was younger, but in a brief time, she has crafted an athletic and competitive nature as a singles’ standout for the North Haven girls’ tennis team after making a sensational switch.
After playing as one half of the No. 3 doubles team for North Haven as a freshman last season, she moved up the ladder and over to the No. 2 slot on the singles’ circuit her sophomore spring. Anna’s move proved to be beneficial for both her and the Nighthawks, who captured 10 total contests for 2023 in qualifying for both the SCC and Class L State Tournaments.
“At the end of middle school, I became more invested in sports, because they changed the way I looked at life, and they made me stronger as an athlete and person,” says Anna, who also fences and plays volleyball for North Haven. “Making the move was big for me; I like doubles because you have a friend on the court, but singles was always the goal for me. I like singles, though, because you always know the next shot is yours, so you don’t have any doubt or hesitation.”
While Anna analyzes that playing doubles is a crash course in synergy by working with a cohort on the court all season long, she confers that flying solo ignites a newfound fire in a competitor by putting all the pressure on one individual.
“I never realized how different playing doubles is. There is so much more communication involved, and it can be a lot more complicated because you are developing a relationship with a partner,” Anna says. “With singles, I went back to a smaller court with just me, yet it felt more familiar. I could also be more confident because it was just me and I could not rely on someone else. Because I was by myself, I had to motivate myself in different ways.”
Anna of course felt some stage fright in stepping onto the court for her first singles’ match this spring, though she adds that she inadvertently became closer to the Southern Connecticut Conference tennis community by being drawn to converse with her opposition.
“Playing singles the first time was a little terrifying because I was so used to being out there with someone. It was a different comfort zone I had to adjust to, but I got to know our other singles’ players better,” says Anna. “It was more about being able to talk to people without being nervous. I also got to know the players from the other teams by being out there by myself. The isolation was intimidating, but I realized the whole team was always with me, too.”
Nighthawks’ girls’ tennis Head Coach Bob Migliorini explains that Anna has become well-versed in the necessary singles’ skill set, both physically and mentally, as a well-balanced player who can keep her composure and her adversaries off-center.
“Singles is a whole different game. It involves much more conditioning, keeping the ball in, and playing steady. Anna has improved on all of those, as well as the depth of her ground strokes,” says Migliorini. “She has improved on hitting the ball around and moving her opponent around. She is really athletic and can wear her opponents down. It is you against the world when playing singles, and she would get down on herself, but she has worked on staying positive and moving onto the next point. She also keeps a good attitude.”
While she admits she makes much fewer errors than in the past, Anna takes further introspection by adding how she is less harsh upon herself after those rare miscues. Physically, she swings a much steadier racquet while outworking and outhustling her adversaries.
“I have gotten better with not getting in my head after a mistake. A big part of that is my teammates, especially when we always have someone cheering you on,” says Anna. “I am way more consistent now. I don’t always hit the ball the hardest, but I can always outlast my opponent. It is about having no unforced errors while developing speed and top-spin shots and not hitting shots out of bounds.”
As she looks to take on greater academic challenges in embarking upon the upperclassmen portion of her North Haven career, Anna is inspired to come back for another hopefully successful spring while swarming the net after the Nighthawks prevailed on the court in terms of wins and losses, but also away from it by seeing great progress in the group dynamics department.
“I look to keep playing sports, take advanced placement classes, build more connections, and be proud of my accomplishments,” Anna says. “We had a really great season. We had a lot of success by winning matches, but we had so much growth with each player. We got stronger and closer as a unit. We did better as a team in practices and found more success in matches because of that. We were all committed to it, and our hard work paid off.”