New Coach: Flanigan hopes to increase the bond between players while improving on a 7-8 finish.
After the Worthington Christian girls tennis team had three coaches in three years, senior Emma Flanigan may be most comfortable this season with the coach she calls “Mom” off the court.
“Emma was very excited for me to take over as the new coach,” said Angela Flanigan, who replaced Dino Tsibouris (WC ’85) and resigned after a 7-8 season last year. “It can be very stressful to have new coaches year after year. I hope to make this year seamless for all the girls.
“One of the things I am looking forward to is helping these ladies take their experience from last year and become smarter, more competitive players. I want to challenge them to know Jesus more and to build better friendships with each other.”
Coach Flanigan played singles and doubles at Wheaton College and has played tennis competitively for more than 45 years. She is not a stranger to the team’s returnees. She was an assistant coach, helping Tsibouris create the lineups, run drills, and coach last season.
Last year, the team started the season winning six out of their first seven matches but struggled to a 1-7 finish in the last eight matches. According to Coach Flanigan, losing sophomore Juliette Piper, who played second singles, to an injury hurt the Warriors. Additionally, Worthington Christian was in one of the hardest Division II leagues in the state, the Central Buckeye League.
Worthington Christian placed fourth in the CBL with a 3-3 record behind Columbus Academy (6-0), Bexley (5-1), and Columbus School for Girls (4-2). Last fall, Bexley junior Amiya Bowles captured the Division II state singles title, and Academy graduates Arya Chabria and Yasemin Bilgin took the Division II doubles title. At the Division II Central District tournament last season, five of the eight singles qualifiers, including the champion and runner-up, and four out of the eight doubles qualifiers, including its champion and runners-up, came from the CBL. Worthington Christian’s seniors Emma Flanigan and Brooke Stone, who won a sectional doubles title at CSG, won their first round of the district tournament before falling to Chabria and Bilgin 6-0, 6-0 in a quarterfinal match.
“Emma and Brooke had a great run in doubles, ultimately losing to the team that won the state championship,” Coach Flanigan said. “I am very proud of how well they played throughout the sectional and district tournaments and looking forward to seeing what they can do this year.”
Those two head up a strong group of returning players, including seniors Lauryl Burns, Katelyn Szczygiel-Hicks, Brooke Winfree, and Trinity Godsey, and sophomores Elise Bourgeois, Tori Bourgeois, Alaina Bourgeois, Evie Bourgeois, Lexee Hooley, Piper, Maria Rouse, and Brianna Woodruff. Tori Bourgeois, Elise Bourgeois, and Winfree all reached the quarterfinals of the CSG sectional singles tournament. At the same time, Evie Bourgeois and graduate Ella Rouse made it to the sectional semifinals in doubles.
Junior Avi Gullion and freshmen Charis Bohler, Sophia Cooper, and Sophia Gullion will be newcomers looking for court time.
“My goals for this year are to create a positive, fun environment where the ladies work as a team and become better athletes and godly women,” Coach Flanigan said. “I would like to improve our winning percentage as a team by better conditioning, focusing on strategies, and getting more people further in the sectional and district tournament than last year.
“The biggest things to determining success is staying healthy; having a passion to compete at their best level of tennis while enjoying the sport; and creating the team bond between the players that helps them push each other to greatness.”