It isn’t often that a freshman leads a team in any statistical category, but for Kourtney Keegan, it has been the norm.
Keegan was named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week on Wednesday after helping No. 7 Florida sweep Arkansas and LSU last weekend at home.
The rookie is having an revelatory first year as a Gator, tallying 29 doubles victories to lead the team.
Florida (15-4, 7-2 SEC) expects Keegan’s consistent play to continue when it travels to face Mississippi State (9-10, 1-8 SEC) at 6 p.m.
The freshman’s elevated play has allowed Coach Roland Thornqvist to start her and senior Olivia Janowicz on Court 1 in doubles. The move has been very successful — the duo is 10-2 as a team this season.
“They have a tremendous amount of confidence,” Thornqvist said of the tandem.
“At [Court] 1, against the really good teams, you can’t hit and look. You got to be able to hit and go. And I think they are [there] now.”
On a team where the lineup rotates from week-to-week, Keegan has held down the lower courts for the bulk of the season.
The freshman is usually the first Gator to earn a point and has won four of her last five singles matches. Against the Razorbacks on Friday, it took Keegan just 49 minutes to win her singles match.
“She’s an incredible talent, and she’s just got all the tools,” Thornqvist said. “She’s got a great serve, she’s got presence, she’s willing to move and poach, and she’s got great power from the ground.
“She has all the little things that it takes.”
Keegan is diligently working to improve each aspect of her game as the post-season draws closer.
“My serve, I’ve been working on it for the past couple weeks and it showed,” she said. “I was working on patterns, with my forehand going across court and opening the court and going down the line. So that’s helped me a lot.”
Florida hopes Keegan and its other freshmen will continue to help propel it to the top of the SEC standings.
The Gators currently sit in fourth place, only two matches behind first place No. 8 Vanderbilt.
If Florida wins today and against Ole Miss on Sunday, a home victory over the Commodores next week could decide the SEC race, and the Gators are 190-1 against SEC opponents at home.
“Playing on the road obviously is the trickier part. Look at what we’ve been able to do [at home],” Thornqvist said.
“It’s tough to win on the road in the SEC in any sport.”
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Kourtney Keegan swings at the ball on Oct. 11,2013 at the Bedford Cup at the Ring Tennis Complex.
