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Pendrak finishes successful first year
By Joe Warren
Nevada Daily Mail
Just completing her first year of school and tennis at Cowley College in Arkansas City, Kan., Gina Pendrak recently looked back on the spring season and her life growing up.
Pendrak had a great year on the court. She went three-for-three against heated rival Johnson County's Jenna Murphy. That included a hard-fought 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 win over Murphy in the championship match of the NJCAA Region VI tournament.
Pendrak's win in number-six singles was the only idividual victory by her team in the regional tournament.
"When I won my flight at regionals, I was ecstatic," Pendrak said. "It was a shock. My coach came and said, 'I knew you could do it.' That's when it hit me."
The regional win also gave Pendrak an impressive 23-7 record during the season, a mark only bettered by Cowley's number-two player Iveta Spalenkova.
As a team Cowley finished second to their rivals. Losing to Johnson County put a sour taste in the mouths of Pendrak and her teammates.
"We were kind of disappointed with that," Pendrak said. "It says something when your team is mad about second."
Pendrak went with her team to play in the national NJCAA tournament. Again she was one of the last players standing for Cowley. Pendrak went all the way to the quarterfinals before bowing out to top-seeded Christina Shelly of Lee College. Shelly went on to finish second in the flight.
Even though Cowley did not win the regional title, their eighth-place finish at nationals and a 14-3 record overall had to be considered a success.
"Everbody held their own," Pendrak said.
The competition level in college was definitely a step up for Pendrak, who had been the number one player for Nevada when she graduated.
"The competition level is a lot tougher," Pendrak said. "Although I play number six, I play people who would be number one in high school. It was difficult in that respect."
Pendrak said that another difference in college was the overall work ethic of her teammates.
"Everybody on the team is so self motivated that they will go out and do what they have to," she said. "That's basically it -- eat, breathe and sleep tennis."
Pendrak said she expected that kind of atmosphere before she got there.
"That's what I signed up for. I knew going in that Cowley was a powerhouse in tennis. I wasn't surprised, but it's definitely hard work," she said.
Pendrak has brought the hard work home with her as she tries to keep improving her game.
"My goal this summer, I'm going to be running more and lifting more," she said. "We have to get as much done in three months as we can. Personally, I want to be better, all the way around. I want to play higher up in the rankings and I want to win regionals again. Not just me, but the team."
Cowley coach Rebecca Meyer has no doubt that Pendrak will be a key cog for the team next season.
"She's been a great asset to the team," Meyer said. "I knew she would be when I recruited her. She couldn't have done any better for me. If she plays further up in the lineup, she should be successful there as well. I'm really going to count on Gina to step up into that leadership role."
One thing working in Pendrak's favor is her upbringing. She was always around tennis growing up. Pendrak has an older sister who played tennis, a younger sister who plays tennis and a father who now coaches tennis.
Pendrak's sisters, Jan and Lisa, have helped her get this far and continue to help her improve.
"They're my rock," Pendrak said. "Without them I wouldn't be where I am right now."
Pendrak said she tries to play her sisters as much as possible in the offseason.
"We hit whenever we can. There's always something to fix. Your game is never perfect. We've been around the game long enough to know what the other's doing wrong," she said.
"Jan, when we were little, she would be able to beat me no matter what. That kept me coming back."
"Lisa, I think she would be an awesome collegiate tennis player. She has the work ethic, the talent, she has everything to go with it."
Lisa Pendrak will be a senior for the Nevada Lady Tigers this fall.
Pendrak also mentioned current Lady Tiger head coach Dennis Pendrak, as a major influence.
"My dad is pretty into it. He's been around the game forever. He knows what we need and if he doesn't know, he takes us to somebody who does," Pendrak said.
Everything Gina Pendrak talks about goes back to improving her game on the court. She wants to keep playing after her career at Cowley County ends next spring.
"That's the goal, if somebody will have me," she said. "That's one of the reasons I work hard to get even better. That way I can go to a four-year school."