IU women’s tennis played its last home match this past Sunday in Bloomington, and it was the team’s senior day.
After the first three singles matches wrapped up against Northwestern, the remaining three matches included IU seniors Kim Schmider and Paula Gutierrez and graduate student Alicia Robinson.
After the match concluded, the team headed to the Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall Spirit of ‘76 Club, a premier suite on the south end of the stadium, for senior day festivities.
IU Coach Ramiro Azcui and assistant Ryan Miller took to the podium, thanked their coaching staff and honored several of the team’s underclassmen before moving on to show appreciation for his veterans.
“It’s a day that I love because we get to honor the seniors for everything they’ve done, but it’s also a day I hate because it means the end is near,” Azcui said in his speech.
Gutierrez was the first senior to give remarks and teared up just one sentence into her speech. She talked about the difficulties of coming from Spain to play under now-retired IU Coach Lin Loring and having to adjust to the weather, school system and practice times.
“I remember Coach and Ramiro tell me that the team will be like my family and that everything is going to be OK,” Gutierrez said. “At the beginning I did not believe that, but at the end I couldn’t imagine that a team of nine girls could be so important in my life.”
Azcui said Gutierrez has made him a better person and that he will miss her energy in matches.
Schmider followed Gutierrez’s speech and expressed similar appreciation for the coaches, staff and athletic department for all the opportunities they have given her. “People always say that you should treasure every moment in college because it flies by,” Schmider said. “As a freshman you don’t really believe that but these fours years have really flown by and I can’t believe my time at IU is about to come to an end. It’s been some of the best years of my life.”
Azcui said it has been special to see Schmider mature as a person and player.
The banquet was full of laughs and tears, but the moments when Schmider and Gutierrez teared up most, however, were when they talked about each other.
Schmider referred to Gutierrez as her teammate, her European, her person since day one and most importantly her best friend.
“I can’t believe our time together is almost over,” Schmider said. “From waking up and seeing (Gutierrez) everyday to living in different countries is going to be so hard.”
Gutierrez said she was honored to share this day with Schmider.
Robinson did not speak at the event. She said because this is her first year with the team, she wanted things to be focused on Schmider and Gutierrez.
“I think that here I’ve had the most support,” Robinson said afterward. “The coaches care about you more as an individual than as a player, so it’s been nice to be in an environment where I trust the coaches.”
Robinson said her teammates were very supportive, especially when she sustained an injury earlier this season that kept her out for a few weeks. She said the whole team is very competitive and their effort each week is what makes them click as a team.
The rest of the Hoosiers showed a great deal of appreciation for their seniors, too.
“They’ve been a huge part of our team since I got here last year,” sophomore Madison Appel said. “I really enjoyed having them on my team and I’m really going to miss them a lot.”
Freshman Anna McCoy said the IU veterans were very welcoming and understanding of this year’s freshman and made the transition easy.
“It’s one thing for the coach to tell us advice,” sophomore Natalie Whalen said. “But when the seniors are passionate about the sport it makes it much more motivating to do your best not only for them but for yourself and the rest of the team.”
