Danielle Levine '13 Recruiting Profile

Ever since I was a rainbow-clad, coloring-book obsessed little girl, my closest friends have always been boys. No matter what they did I always had to tag along and copy them.  If the boys felt inspired to fight dragons, flee Captain Hooks pirates or fly away with our homemade capes from the bad guys you would find me right there with them.  They found me useful to use as the hostage or as a bargaining chip because I was the youngest and the easiest to catch.   Eventually, the excitement we gleaned from torturing each other wore thin and the boys took to tennis.  Seeing that I considered myself one of the guys, I knew that I had to join-in on the fun.  I remember the very first day I stepped onto the forest green court with the upright cobweb that tennis gurus refer to as a net.  I was all of 4 ¾-years-old and extremely excited for this opportunity to solidify my reputation with the boys. As would be expected from a herd of 6-year-old boys, they could not resist the temptation to gang-up on the only girl, that girl being me. That day consisted of tears and bruises on account of several hundred tennis balls being hurled at me. Yet the tomboy in me did not succumb to victimization...oh no!  I wiped away my tears, picked up one of those neon yellow projectiles, and catapulted it right back at them. Besides, I looked rather cool doing that with my bright yellow Sponge-Bob racket.  Who knew that this random day at the tennis court would ignite some part of me that I never even knew existed:  Danielle, the tennis player?  Determined to take back my power, armed with a racket and a ball, I had finally found a place where I felt as though I mattered and where I could change the world.

Ever since that first day when I stepped foot on the tennis court, I could not help but come back for more.  Every match lost has provided me with an opportunity to learn from my mistakes, perfect my technique, and throw myself into the game of life:  my life.  Tennis has taught me how to handle difficult situations, maintain my composure, funnel my energy into worthwhile pursuits, and trust my instincts.  It has helped me maintain balance through the rigors of academia as well as through the drama of growing up and asserting myself as an individual.  Most importantly, it has provided me with a sense of belonging--no longer to an ill-suited club of boys--but to a community of free-thinkers and diverse, colorful characters who could appreciate me:  the little girl who had once worn rainbows and made everyone contribute a spectrum shade to a book of inanimate friends like Clifford the Big Red Dog, Barbie, and Pokemon.  Tennis has given me true friends, and a true sense of self.  

I cannot imagine my college years without time spent cultivating my passion on the court as I have done throughout my life.  My amazing coaches and mentors have enabled me to succeed as an athlete on a level that I never could have fathomed, yet they can only take me so far.  I know that having the opportunity to play tennis in college will allow me to have even more meaningful and unforgettable experiences.  I look forward to becoming an integral part of a team and aid a team to a championship. Not only do I visualize being included as a team member but also developing new skill-sets, new relationships, new perspectives, and new parts of myself.  I dare not leave any part of me behind, especially my racket; although, I do see it fit to trade in my Sponge-Bob for a Babolat.