Make It Common
Jan 09, 2025 | Tennis, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Kansas State tennis coach Jordan Smith says that the team was supposed to start practice on Monday, which obviously didn't happen due to near-record snowfall across Manhattan. Several players, coming off winter break, were struggling to return to the Little Apple. Even-keeled Smith takes it all in stride.
"It is what it is, and this is life, and it's how do you respond," Smith says.
A fitting life lesson, yes, and perhaps a mere precursor to what could snowball into an abundance of success for the Wildcats, who come off arguably their best fall season in program history.
The Wildcats head into spring with two K-State doubles teams that were featured in the final fall national rankings from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) on December 3. Senior Veronika Kulhava and sophomore Tereza Polakova were ranked No. 50, and sophomore Maralgoo Chogsomjav and junior Maria Santos were ranked No. 58.
For the first time in school history, K-State beat a No. 1-ranked doubles team, as Kulhava and Polakova claimed a victory over Oklahoma State's Ange Oby Kajuru and Anastasiya Komar, the ITA preseason No. 1 duo, at the ITA Central Regional Championship in Memphis on October 11.
"Our team, for where we're trying to go, the best way to look back at the fall is to say, 'We want more. We want this to be common and not uncommon,'" Smith says.
K-State begins its spring season January 16-18 at the Battle at Indian Wells, which will be hosted by Kansas at Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
"That's our goal, is to take this program to a conference championship and win the Big 12, so we know we have to be as good on day one as we do on day three of the tournament (at Indian Wells)," Smith says.
K-State Sports Extra's D. Scott Fritchen spoke with K-State women's tennis head coach Jordan Smith as the Wildcats prepare for their spring season.
D. Scott Fritchen: We just had near-record snowfall in Manhattan. What's the practice strategy with these developments with the snow as you prepare for the season?
Jordan Smith: It's the same. At any point, if you panic for an outside reason that you can't control, you're not helping the situation. I don't think you need to rush and try to make up for time off. We'll just keep moving forward with quality over quantity. When we're able to go out there, hopefully it's more purposeful and mindful, and we can't worry about the other stuff. You start doing that and frustration is going to creep in there. I don't think that'll be a nice variable going into competition. It is what it is, and this is life, and it's how do you respond.
Fritchen: You have served as head coach seven years at K-State. Does it seem like it's been seven years?
Smith: Well, it's been longer having served as assistant, too, so this is my 10th year in all. It doesn't feel like it sometimes and other times it does, and it kind of depends upon the situation. There aren't many things that are new and catch me off guard because of the experience and talent we've brought in here. It's an ever-changing landscape of college athletics, so there are some things that are so new to me that I don't know what's going to happen next. When you love what you do and you're able to be impactful and do the best you can for these young student-athletes, it should go by fast and it should feel like you've just started.
Fritchen: How would you describe the fall season — the good moments and the growth moments that the team experienced?
Smith: It's so funny, I had a coach ask me this, and looking back on the fall, he said, "If somebody would've told you that you'd have two doubles teams nationally ranked at the end of the fall, and to qualify for two national championships, and the team beats the No. 1 team in the country for the first time…" of course I'd take that. And those things happened. Our team, for where we're trying to go, the best way to look back at the fall is to say, "We want more. We want this to be common and not uncommon." The fact that we had success in the singles and doubles and had these rankings and these big wins and to qualify for two national events, we don't want that to be an anomaly. Looking forward, I'm just looking back, and I'm saying, "Hey, this is what you can do at K-State." That's what I've taken from everything, is this is what K-State tennis was always meant to be, and they can be proud of what they're creating. That's the kind of feeling. It wasn't anything like, 'We're overachieving.' I thought this was accurate, and in some points, we left a little out there and could've done a little more.
Fritchen: What did it feel like beating a No. 1 team?
Smith: We were down in Memphis for a big regional tournament, and this year it meant more because we moved our NCAA individual tournament to the fall right before Thanksgiving, so there were a lot of bids, that if you made it so far you automatically qualified. So, we knew the competition was going to be stronger than it ever had been. It was harder to get in. There was a qualifying draw. The week before, anybody can tell you we struggled with the doubles. We've been a good singles team. A lot of these kids don't play doubles growing up. We just pushed it. Me and our assistant coaches, we were like, "We have to treat this equal." The mindset has to be that you can get better from playing doubles with your singles game. You don't only get better on the singles court. We pushed them and said, "Hey, even if you don't feel comfortable, give it your all." That's all it was when we came to the tournament. I'll be honest, we worked out on Monday and the tournament started on Wednesday, and I was very shocked that the team responded and did so well. They were making us look too good as coaches at how well they got it going.
We're lucky to be a team that beat the No. 1 team in the country. They [Kulhava, Polakova] had played together all last year, they had a winning record, won a fall event last year, so for me, I knew they were one of the best teams in the country. They just didn't have that credit to their name yet or that big result. It was challenging. It came down to a tie breaker. I was very proud of them because they also matched points. In fact, one of our girls got hit in the face by the opposing team, which could've rattled her, but the fact that you fall down and get back up and keep going forward, that's what they did. They bought in with, "We have to change our mindset and change our brand because we need to be a dual threat and not singles only." That was the strategy. That was the biggest confidence, just knowing they had it within them already.
Fritchen: Where can this group improve the most during the spring?
Smith: That's a great question. I think the biggest thing that they can improve upon the most is just staying in the moment. They're so great to each other, and they know that they put in a lot of hard work and it's easy to rush to see success come your way. I feel like whenever you do that you miss out and you don't act like you've been there before. This group, the only message I try to tell them is to know you belong and feel like you belong and make uncomfortable comfortable and just know that there's no other situation where you can lean on somebody else in college athletics and know somebody else has your back to go through whatever tough situation is coming forward with you. Just lean with people as you do it. That's what we want them to do, is to lean on each other, and become a complete unit, and I know we're going to overcome a lot of obstacles together.
Fritchen: Who were some MVPs in the fall season?
Smith: Obviously, we all did well, but I have to give it up to those four girls who did really well on the doubles court — Maralgoo Chogsomjay and Maria Santos, and Veronika Kulhava and Tereza Polkova. Then there's Charlotte Keitel qualifying for a national event and winning and advancing. It's equal. That's how you want it to be. I'd hate for us to be top heavy. Definitely you have to put up there those four girls who gave themselves a chance to get a national ranking and be NCAA qualifiers. We had three transfers come in and they've acclimated really well. We had a crazy fall that I don't think any program can say they have. We were in four cities on the same day. That's a credit to success we've had as a program. We had the two national qualifiers, a girl winning an event, and then we had another girl playing in an ASU tournament. The fact that we had four tournaments going on at once is crazy, but I can't be any more proud that we were in that situation.
Fritchen: Can you describe the past couple months in preparing for this spring season?
Smith: Our sport is different because we don't see them for five weeks, and then we get them for about a week and a half and we go. So, our rules are a little different from most sports. I'm really proud of our team. It's getting very player driven. They're holding themselves accountable. I'm really excited for the season. Players have come back, and they want to do better. Honestly, it's just getting more fun. That helps when you have a staff like I do that cares for our ladies, whether it's in the weight room, or training room. We're very fortunate that we have a group that supports our team, and it makes my job easier. It's great to see how they got along and really put themselves together. My sport and golf, they grow up by themselves for years, and then we put them in a team situation, so that's different. That's really different. So, you have to have a lot of respect for the kids who buy into you quickly.
Fritchen: What makes Veronika and Tereza a potent duo?
Smith: The big thing is they come from similar backgrounds and the same country. They're three or four years apart, so it isn't like they grew up playing tournaments at the same time. It's just the compare and contrast that makes them such a great duo. Different styles and different overall mental tempos. That's what I really appreciate. Veronika might have a little greater sense of urgency on what she's trying to do on the court whereas Tereza is going to be a little bit more balanced and calm and just weather the storm a little better. You put that together and that's a great combination.
Fritchen: What makes Maralgoo and Maria a potent duo?
Smith: In some ways it's the silliness that they bring to the court that helps to make it more fun and free for them. Both are very talented and can do a lot of things, so that does help them. It's funny. You see them do some things on the court and just laugh because I don't even think they expect it. As a coach, you're like, "Oh gosh," but when it works out, you're like, "I guess I can't say anything now." Their passion, I love the way they fight and compete. It isn't always pretty, but when one is down, the other one is strong, and that says a lot about themselves is their temperament and dedication to one another and the team because they know that both can't go down, so there's always that one who'll rise up.
Fritchen: You kick things off at the Battle at Indian Wells on January 16 in California. How excited are you for this challenge?
Smith: I'm pumped. Obviously, you've got two teams in our conference [Kansas, Iowa State], and they happen to be two teams that we played to end the regular season, so it'll be obviously great to see how we start against them and see where we are at the end of April, and to see how much we've gotten better. We've played Arkansas before, so anytime you can play an SEC opponent is good. It's just different compared to how hard the Big 12 is. I mean, our league has consistently been one of the top two leagues in the country in terms of depth along with the ACC. At one point, we've had 11 teams ranked Top 50 including us last year. It's just good to see someone different. I'm excited. It's going to be challenging playing three days in a row, but the message to the team is if you want to be a conference champion, you're going to have to go through the gauntlet three days in a row. That's our goal, is to take this program to a conference championship and win the Big 12. So, we know we have to be as good on day one as we do on day three. That's the message we're trying to send. Hopefully, next week can prepare us for our future goals and be a situation where we know we can play well over the course of three days.
Fritchen: What are some things that stand out about your spring schedule?
Smith: I know a lot of coaches can go in there and easily pad their win-loss record, but since I've taken over this program, the goal for me is to get this team to the NCAA and Regional, and that isn't going to change. That's what I've done with the schedule, is put ourselves in the situation where if we show up, and we believe in ourselves, that is going to happen 1000%. Obviously, with some new teams, we're playing three out of the four new schools that have joined us, everyone but Colorado, so we're really excited to host UCF and Houston and Utah and the Arizona schools. That's really cool. They're in the Big 12 now, and they have to play K-State on the road and they know how hard it is going to be to compete here. I'm really excited about that and seeing how our players show up. I think we have seven home matches in the Big 12, so that's really cool.
Kansas State tennis coach Jordan Smith says that the team was supposed to start practice on Monday, which obviously didn't happen due to near-record snowfall across Manhattan. Several players, coming off winter break, were struggling to return to the Little Apple. Even-keeled Smith takes it all in stride.
"It is what it is, and this is life, and it's how do you respond," Smith says.
A fitting life lesson, yes, and perhaps a mere precursor to what could snowball into an abundance of success for the Wildcats, who come off arguably their best fall season in program history.
The Wildcats head into spring with two K-State doubles teams that were featured in the final fall national rankings from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) on December 3. Senior Veronika Kulhava and sophomore Tereza Polakova were ranked No. 50, and sophomore Maralgoo Chogsomjav and junior Maria Santos were ranked No. 58.
For the first time in school history, K-State beat a No. 1-ranked doubles team, as Kulhava and Polakova claimed a victory over Oklahoma State's Ange Oby Kajuru and Anastasiya Komar, the ITA preseason No. 1 duo, at the ITA Central Regional Championship in Memphis on October 11.
"Our team, for where we're trying to go, the best way to look back at the fall is to say, 'We want more. We want this to be common and not uncommon,'" Smith says.
K-State begins its spring season January 16-18 at the Battle at Indian Wells, which will be hosted by Kansas at Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
"That's our goal, is to take this program to a conference championship and win the Big 12, so we know we have to be as good on day one as we do on day three of the tournament (at Indian Wells)," Smith says.
K-State Sports Extra's D. Scott Fritchen spoke with K-State women's tennis head coach Jordan Smith as the Wildcats prepare for their spring season.
D. Scott Fritchen: We just had near-record snowfall in Manhattan. What's the practice strategy with these developments with the snow as you prepare for the season?
Jordan Smith: It's the same. At any point, if you panic for an outside reason that you can't control, you're not helping the situation. I don't think you need to rush and try to make up for time off. We'll just keep moving forward with quality over quantity. When we're able to go out there, hopefully it's more purposeful and mindful, and we can't worry about the other stuff. You start doing that and frustration is going to creep in there. I don't think that'll be a nice variable going into competition. It is what it is, and this is life, and it's how do you respond.
Fritchen: You have served as head coach seven years at K-State. Does it seem like it's been seven years?
Smith: Well, it's been longer having served as assistant, too, so this is my 10th year in all. It doesn't feel like it sometimes and other times it does, and it kind of depends upon the situation. There aren't many things that are new and catch me off guard because of the experience and talent we've brought in here. It's an ever-changing landscape of college athletics, so there are some things that are so new to me that I don't know what's going to happen next. When you love what you do and you're able to be impactful and do the best you can for these young student-athletes, it should go by fast and it should feel like you've just started.
Fritchen: How would you describe the fall season — the good moments and the growth moments that the team experienced?
Smith: It's so funny, I had a coach ask me this, and looking back on the fall, he said, "If somebody would've told you that you'd have two doubles teams nationally ranked at the end of the fall, and to qualify for two national championships, and the team beats the No. 1 team in the country for the first time…" of course I'd take that. And those things happened. Our team, for where we're trying to go, the best way to look back at the fall is to say, "We want more. We want this to be common and not uncommon." The fact that we had success in the singles and doubles and had these rankings and these big wins and to qualify for two national events, we don't want that to be an anomaly. Looking forward, I'm just looking back, and I'm saying, "Hey, this is what you can do at K-State." That's what I've taken from everything, is this is what K-State tennis was always meant to be, and they can be proud of what they're creating. That's the kind of feeling. It wasn't anything like, 'We're overachieving.' I thought this was accurate, and in some points, we left a little out there and could've done a little more.
Fritchen: What did it feel like beating a No. 1 team?
Smith: We were down in Memphis for a big regional tournament, and this year it meant more because we moved our NCAA individual tournament to the fall right before Thanksgiving, so there were a lot of bids, that if you made it so far you automatically qualified. So, we knew the competition was going to be stronger than it ever had been. It was harder to get in. There was a qualifying draw. The week before, anybody can tell you we struggled with the doubles. We've been a good singles team. A lot of these kids don't play doubles growing up. We just pushed it. Me and our assistant coaches, we were like, "We have to treat this equal." The mindset has to be that you can get better from playing doubles with your singles game. You don't only get better on the singles court. We pushed them and said, "Hey, even if you don't feel comfortable, give it your all." That's all it was when we came to the tournament. I'll be honest, we worked out on Monday and the tournament started on Wednesday, and I was very shocked that the team responded and did so well. They were making us look too good as coaches at how well they got it going.
We're lucky to be a team that beat the No. 1 team in the country. They [Kulhava, Polakova] had played together all last year, they had a winning record, won a fall event last year, so for me, I knew they were one of the best teams in the country. They just didn't have that credit to their name yet or that big result. It was challenging. It came down to a tie breaker. I was very proud of them because they also matched points. In fact, one of our girls got hit in the face by the opposing team, which could've rattled her, but the fact that you fall down and get back up and keep going forward, that's what they did. They bought in with, "We have to change our mindset and change our brand because we need to be a dual threat and not singles only." That was the strategy. That was the biggest confidence, just knowing they had it within them already.
Fritchen: Where can this group improve the most during the spring?
Smith: That's a great question. I think the biggest thing that they can improve upon the most is just staying in the moment. They're so great to each other, and they know that they put in a lot of hard work and it's easy to rush to see success come your way. I feel like whenever you do that you miss out and you don't act like you've been there before. This group, the only message I try to tell them is to know you belong and feel like you belong and make uncomfortable comfortable and just know that there's no other situation where you can lean on somebody else in college athletics and know somebody else has your back to go through whatever tough situation is coming forward with you. Just lean with people as you do it. That's what we want them to do, is to lean on each other, and become a complete unit, and I know we're going to overcome a lot of obstacles together.
Fritchen: Who were some MVPs in the fall season?
Smith: Obviously, we all did well, but I have to give it up to those four girls who did really well on the doubles court — Maralgoo Chogsomjay and Maria Santos, and Veronika Kulhava and Tereza Polkova. Then there's Charlotte Keitel qualifying for a national event and winning and advancing. It's equal. That's how you want it to be. I'd hate for us to be top heavy. Definitely you have to put up there those four girls who gave themselves a chance to get a national ranking and be NCAA qualifiers. We had three transfers come in and they've acclimated really well. We had a crazy fall that I don't think any program can say they have. We were in four cities on the same day. That's a credit to success we've had as a program. We had the two national qualifiers, a girl winning an event, and then we had another girl playing in an ASU tournament. The fact that we had four tournaments going on at once is crazy, but I can't be any more proud that we were in that situation.
Fritchen: Can you describe the past couple months in preparing for this spring season?
Smith: Our sport is different because we don't see them for five weeks, and then we get them for about a week and a half and we go. So, our rules are a little different from most sports. I'm really proud of our team. It's getting very player driven. They're holding themselves accountable. I'm really excited for the season. Players have come back, and they want to do better. Honestly, it's just getting more fun. That helps when you have a staff like I do that cares for our ladies, whether it's in the weight room, or training room. We're very fortunate that we have a group that supports our team, and it makes my job easier. It's great to see how they got along and really put themselves together. My sport and golf, they grow up by themselves for years, and then we put them in a team situation, so that's different. That's really different. So, you have to have a lot of respect for the kids who buy into you quickly.
Fritchen: What makes Veronika and Tereza a potent duo?
Smith: The big thing is they come from similar backgrounds and the same country. They're three or four years apart, so it isn't like they grew up playing tournaments at the same time. It's just the compare and contrast that makes them such a great duo. Different styles and different overall mental tempos. That's what I really appreciate. Veronika might have a little greater sense of urgency on what she's trying to do on the court whereas Tereza is going to be a little bit more balanced and calm and just weather the storm a little better. You put that together and that's a great combination.
Fritchen: What makes Maralgoo and Maria a potent duo?
Smith: In some ways it's the silliness that they bring to the court that helps to make it more fun and free for them. Both are very talented and can do a lot of things, so that does help them. It's funny. You see them do some things on the court and just laugh because I don't even think they expect it. As a coach, you're like, "Oh gosh," but when it works out, you're like, "I guess I can't say anything now." Their passion, I love the way they fight and compete. It isn't always pretty, but when one is down, the other one is strong, and that says a lot about themselves is their temperament and dedication to one another and the team because they know that both can't go down, so there's always that one who'll rise up.
Fritchen: You kick things off at the Battle at Indian Wells on January 16 in California. How excited are you for this challenge?
Smith: I'm pumped. Obviously, you've got two teams in our conference [Kansas, Iowa State], and they happen to be two teams that we played to end the regular season, so it'll be obviously great to see how we start against them and see where we are at the end of April, and to see how much we've gotten better. We've played Arkansas before, so anytime you can play an SEC opponent is good. It's just different compared to how hard the Big 12 is. I mean, our league has consistently been one of the top two leagues in the country in terms of depth along with the ACC. At one point, we've had 11 teams ranked Top 50 including us last year. It's just good to see someone different. I'm excited. It's going to be challenging playing three days in a row, but the message to the team is if you want to be a conference champion, you're going to have to go through the gauntlet three days in a row. That's our goal, is to take this program to a conference championship and win the Big 12. So, we know we have to be as good on day one as we do on day three. That's the message we're trying to send. Hopefully, next week can prepare us for our future goals and be a situation where we know we can play well over the course of three days.
Fritchen: What are some things that stand out about your spring schedule?
Smith: I know a lot of coaches can go in there and easily pad their win-loss record, but since I've taken over this program, the goal for me is to get this team to the NCAA and Regional, and that isn't going to change. That's what I've done with the schedule, is put ourselves in the situation where if we show up, and we believe in ourselves, that is going to happen 1000%. Obviously, with some new teams, we're playing three out of the four new schools that have joined us, everyone but Colorado, so we're really excited to host UCF and Houston and Utah and the Arizona schools. That's really cool. They're in the Big 12 now, and they have to play K-State on the road and they know how hard it is going to be to compete here. I'm really excited about that and seeing how our players show up. I think we have seven home matches in the Big 12, so that's really cool.
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