The Haddam-Killingworth girls’ tennis team is sporting a fresh look in more ways than one this spring with several promising underclass athletes, as well as a change at the helm in new Head Coach Donna Clark.

Donna, who’s lived in Killingworth the past 23 years, grew up in western New York and first picked up a racquet at age 8 before she started competing on the court two years later. Donna worked her way through the high school circuit at Nardin Academy in Buffalo, New York and also played collegiately at Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York for a brief time. This spring, Donna returns to the world of athletics as the Cougars’ head coach and she immediately saw her team collect a victory in its first week of action.

“I have known a couple of the girls on the team for awhile, so I stay informed on what was going on with the group. I had heard that their former coach Patty Early was stepping down and people were suggesting that I step in. I applied, went through the interview process with [HK Athletic Director] Lynne Flint, and here I am,” says Donna, a longtime HK sports parent. “While I played junior tennis, I always enjoyed working at camps and clinics and teaching younger kids. I think that led to my interest in this position.”

It can take a great deal of time for a high school tennis player to learn the game while waiting for a chance to compete under the varsity spotlight and so Donna wants her girls to display the virtue of patience. Still, Donna is already quite pleased with the passion her athletes have shown in such a short timespan.

“With tennis, you have it where not everyone on the team is playing a match and many of our girls have picked up the sport recently, so it’s important to me to guide them on how to improve. Also, it’s about teaching them the idea of being on a team, learning how to compete, and keeping them dedicated to the sport,” Donna says. “Only two weeks in, I’m very excited to see such energy and enthusiasm from them. They have such a desire to learn and grow and I look forward to more growth this season.”

Donna’s vast background in tennis, coupled with her familiarity with HK’s program, were more than enough for Flint to appoint Donna to the head coaching position.

“We are very excited to welcome Donna to our coaching staff. Her knowledge of the sport and of our school district were some of the main factors that led us to hiring her for the position,” says Flint. “Her calm demeanor and experience as a player herself were two aspects I was impressed also with. I am excited to have her on board this spring.”

In terms of what she enjoys about coaching, Donna loves the fact that high school tennis requires a mentor to teach both singles players and doubles duos how to perform their best for the greater good of the team.

“It’s exciting because it is a team sport, but it’s also so individualized,” says Donna. “You really have to work with the girls 1-on-1 with coaching tennis. You have to work with them individually with things like ground strokes and developing strategies. It’s also enjoyable to work on coaching for different singles and doubles situations.”

As she inherits a young bunch at HK, Donna knows that persistence and cohesiveness will be key components in order for the Cougars to have a future filled with success.

“Our team is young this year, having mainly freshmen and sophomores, so I’d like to keep the team together, while having them grow together, as well,” says Donna. “I also want to have them improve as much as possible as individuals and as a group.”