Owen Grafe '15 Recruiting Profile

Hi, my name is Owen. I am a two-time Boston Globe All-Scholastic tennis player and co-captain of the Newton North High team. I have been playing tennis from the age of 7, and ever since my dad gave me a racket and some balls for us to hit against the wall at the local YMCA, I have truly enjoyed the sport. I have gone through periods of hating playing, and dreading to take the basket of balls out to drill serves and I have had times where the only thing I wanted to do was hit for hours. The worst was when the impulse happened during school hours. I don't play now because my father or coach tells me to, I play now because I think that tennis the best and most enjoyable sport to play. I have played high school varsity doubles for three seasons and I have started for the team all three years. In order to practice and improve during the offseason, I play several hours a week at the Waltham Athletic Center as well as many clubs and clinics around the Boston area. I have played at the Sportsman?s club in Dorchester, at Boston College, and with Mike Mercer of the Boston Lobsters at the Harvard courts in Cambridge. In the summer, I have played in Maine at the Addidas and Maine Pines tennis camps, and more recently I have worked as a coach for the Maine Pines Tennis Racquet club?s summer camps. I feel that because of playing and teaching tennis at these myriad venues, I have been able to get a feel for many different styles of tennis. At all stages of my improvement, I have been lucky to have the opportunity to compete with a variety of opponents that could play at a higher level than myself. As a result of my training and experience I am a versatile and competitive player. I also run and throw on the varsity winter track team where last year I was ranked 7th in the state meet for shot put. I am proud of helping my team reach the post season for the past three years. With each of my doubles partners I?ve made it to the Final Round of the MIAA South Sectional Tournament in 2013 and 2014. I primarily played doubles for this year, however I was also asked to play singles for many matches during the season. I would be an asset to any college team because I love to play. I would enjoy being at the matches and practices because it would mean I get to play with skilled players and experienced coaches. Being a part of a team in high school gave me a safe heaven of acceptance in an otherwise intimidating social landscape, and a set of close friends that I would not have made anywhere else. I would love for that experience in college. I am a versatile player and could continue to be an asset as a doubles player, or to play singles in college. I loved high school tennis because I felt a real sense of camaraderie with my teammates; I could add that same sense of easygoing fun and acceptance paired with high-level competition that I experienced with my high school team.