For the next installment of our summer series, we spoke with Katy Keith, a senior at Purcell High School.

Katy has grown up in Purcell her whole life and plays tennis for the Dragons. 

Katy’s conversation is below. For those interested in featuring your student in the spotlight, please send a picture of the student with a short description stating why they should be featured to purcellregister@gmail.com.

Q: What is one of your favorite memories from playing tennis in high school?

A: “This last season my tennis partner Karlee Tolle and I went to State and it was such a great experience, especially since we just started playing our freshman year. I’d probably say that because we didn’t really have a big tennis program before that… There were maybe four people but this year we have 22, so it was the first time our tennis program really got big.”

Q: What is something a coach has told you that you’ve remembered or that has stuck with you?

A: “Before every game, my tennis coaches always tell us to just go have fun and do our best no matter if we win or lose. They always just want us to go have fun, and that’s very important to me; it puts me at ease before competing.”

Q: Do you have any strange superstitions that you believe in as an athlete?

A: “Not really. I pray before each game and like to listen to music to get ready.”

Q: A lot of people are inspired by another athlete and may kind of structure their game around how that person plays. Do you model your game around any athlete past or present? If not, who would you say your game is most comparable to?

A: “I would probably say my tennis coach Gavin Nation. He has taught me basically everything good about tennis and probably gets me the most competitive because he’s very competitive too. He graduated in 2020 and went to State several times himself, so I definitely think I look up to him.”

Q: How do you set yourself apart from other student-athletes? What makes your game special or different?

A: “Tennis is not really a common sport here. Like I mentioned, we just got it started.  I think that’s very different from others because nobody really knows what tennis is like. So I really dedicate myself to performing well because the sport is not well-known. I’m trying to stand up for tennis and make it known in Purcell.”

Q: When you have a bad game or practice, what do you do to take your mind off things or reset from that game? Do you have any hobbies that you lean on away from the field?

A: “I really like to hang out with my family and my friends. They keep me distracted if a game goes bad or anything. I read a lot, hang out with my boyfriend, and just kind of stay distracted with my family and friends… They keep me distracted if I do really bad.”

Q: Obviously, a lot of students look forward to the summer to get away from school. Do you have any plans or are you doing anything this summer? If so, what are they?

A: “Last week I actually just got back from a Youth Leadership of Oklahoma organization. It’s not really well-known but it is very high-esteemed. I got to graduate as a YLOK student, so that was a great experience for me.”

She added, “Next week I’m going to the beach with my family and I am also working all summer. I have two jobs; I work for the Purcell Multi-Purpose Center and I’m a lifeguard at the Pauls Valley waterpark.”

Q: Do you see yourself pursuing your sport at the next level? If not, what are your plans for the future?

A: “I won’t be going to college to play tennis because it is a very dedicated sport, you have to really be good at it, and I am, but not really to the extent to go to college. But I do plan on playing tennis just as a hobby after high school because you can play it your entire life. And I’ll be going to college to either get a degree in business or education.”

Q: What advice would you give to your younger self?

A: “I would probably tell my younger self it’s okay to do what’s best for you. I’ve made hard decisions on sports and didn’t want to disappoint anyone, so I would tell my younger self to do whatever you think is best for you and that it’s okay because you’ll probably be better in the long run.”

Q: What’s one of the biggest challenges you run into as a student athlete?

A: “I’ve always been really hard on myself in sports, so I guess I would say just trying not to be too hard on myself and always just trying to have fun because it is just a game, and you’re there to have fun and love what you’re doing. So I would just say relaxing and not getting too hard on myself.”

Q: When you step onto the field/court/pitch, whatever it may be, what’s your biggest motivating factor? What’s your why?

A: “I just love to compete. I love to win and I love to play tennis, so my biggest motivating factor would be to win. I also play to prove to myself and others that I can do whatever I set my mind to. So by going to State this year, we showed our town that tennis is something that actually needs to be shown, and I think we proved that when we went to State. That’s what I would say, I love to win so that’s what I set my mind to, and my motivation is to win all the time.”