Sept. 21, 2007

By Caroline Korsawe
Reporter, The Baylor Lariat

Daily practices and workouts are not unusual for senior Zuzana Zemenova, who started playing tennis at age 7 in her hometown of Kosice, Slovakia. From an early age, Zemenova had the vision of becoming a professional tennis player.

In Dec. 2003, her life went in a different direction. Head coach Joey Scrivano went to Slovakia for a recruiting trip and after watching her hit for a few minutes, he realized that there was something unique about her.

"I knew that she was a special player," Scrivano said.

Zemenova never had any intentions of going to the U.S. -- it was her parents and former coach who made the decision.

After winning the NCAA Individual Championship in 2005 and finishing third in 2007, Zemenova set high personal and team goals. As she heads into her final year she wants to win the individual competition one more time. However, she values team goals over personal goals.

"I want to win the NCAA Championship with the team," Zemenova said. "It's all about hard work and belief in yourself. I am trying to do my best in every aspect. On the court and in the weight room."

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