{"id":574,"date":"2023-04-09T15:15:04","date_gmt":"2023-04-09T15:15:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/?p=574"},"modified":"2023-04-09T15:15:06","modified_gmt":"2023-04-09T15:15:06","slug":"selking-poised-for-big-senior-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/09\/selking-poised-for-big-senior-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Selking poised for big senior season"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

DANE FUELLING<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

WZBD<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There has been plenty of change this season for the Bellmont tennis team with a change in head coach and the graduation of several key players from last year\u2019s team, but one constant over the past few years has been the consistent play at No. 1 Singles by Olivia Selking.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Bellmont senior Olivia Selking has been the top singles player for the Braves her entire career and this year, more than ever, she serves as a leader for the team. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Now in her season, Selking has overcome the lost Covid season and other challenges to become one of the top individual players in the area and to be a leader on this Bellmont team. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The youngest child in a family of tennis players, Selking has worked hard throughout her life to reach this point in her career. Few female players at BHS over the last decade have played as much offseason tennis as Selking has, and it shows on the court each time she plays. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOlivia would never say it,\u201d new head coach Kyle Arnold points out, \u201cbut everyone on the team knows she is the strongest player on the team. She leads by example, though, and would never brag about her play.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her final season, Selking finally feels comfortable putting pressure on herself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have high expectations for myself and for our team,\u201d she says. \u201cThe last two years at number one singles have taught me a lot. Those years have been full of experiences that were meant for me to learn more about myself as a player. It has also taught me more about how my opponents play.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Extremely gracious in her demeanor and attitude, Selking is surprisingly competitive to those with whom she\u2019s casually acquainted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe is always paying attention and willing to learn and get better,\u201d says Arnold. \u201cThat kind of attitude sets an example that all the other girls can follow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Arnold has not seen Selking play for that long, he already recognizes several things he likes about her game. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMany of the girls have good ground strokes with good top spin, but Olivia is extremely fluid and smooth in her motion,\u201d notes the coach. \u201cThe footwork, the back swing and follow through all work together smoothly and make her fun to watch.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her teammates are also supportive and appreciative of her game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Her placement of shots and her consistency and her aggressiveness,” notes teammate and friend Emy Faurote. “They’re all so good. I think she could beat every one in our conference beyond the girl from Leo. I look for her to make it out of our sectional even if we don\u2019t go on as a team.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One (literal) sore spot to Selking\u2019s game right now is her service as the senior has been dealing with a nagging injury. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe hasn\u2019t served much at all in the first three weeks of practice,\u201d admits Arnold. \u201cShe\u2019s been stretching her shoulder, she\u2019s gotten it scraped and she\u2019s attempted to rest it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Olivia Selking serves against Jay County as her family watches behind her. The senior’s right shoulder has caused her some trouble in the opening weeks of the season. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Only recently beginning to serve daily, Arnold is excited to see how her serve looks in the first few matches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Selking will see plenty of straight-set victories this season with Bellmont\u2019s schedule, but she will no doubt have several matches circled on the calendar. She lost three times in the conference last year, her only losses of the regular season. While the opponent from East Noble has graduated, the girls from Leo and Columbia City will present major challenges for Selking in 2023. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs I have gotten older, I have learned how to change my playing style based on my opponent,\u201d admits Selking. \u201cThat has been very valuable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Selking also admits that her new coach has brought a new energy to the team. While her father, Joe, is a constant presence at practice as an assistant, coach Arnold has already made an impact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt gives us a fresh new look and another coaching style,\u201d she says. \u201cHis energy unites our team. He pushes us hard, so we are ready to face challenges as the season progresses. This combination is what will help our team this season.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless of the individual success Selking is likely to have, coach Arnold appreciates what she brings to the rest of the team more than anything. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have already used her as an example to the underclassmen on how to best do certain drills on the courts as well as how to dress for the cold weather practices we frequently have. A lot of her leadership comes from her experience on the team over the years, but it would be diluted without her kindness and encouragement that she brings to the other girls.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Selking is always graceful in defeat or victory, serving as an example for younger players on the team. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Local fans will have two chances to come out and watch Selking at the Bellmont tennis courts this week as the Braves host Dwenger on Tuesday and Wayne Thursday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DANE FUELLING WZBD There has been plenty of change this season for the Bellmont tennis team with a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":578,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[13,15,26],"class_list":["post-574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-bellmont","tag-featured","tag-sports"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wzbd.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/DSC_0322-1-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1696&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=574"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wzbd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}