Creighton women’s tennis senior Jennie Hartjes currently holds a 6-4 singles record and a 3-5 doubles record this season and is competing in the No. 1 singles position for the Bluejays for the fourth consecutive year.
The Woodbury, Minnesota native has 63 career singles wins and 55 career doubles wins. Her combined 117 career wins is enough to put her fourth all-time in career wins in school history.
Hartjes is one of three seniors on this year’s squad. On a balanced team that features six underclassmen and five upperclassmen, Hartjes said that she really embraces her role as the captain of the team.
“The seniors Liz [Vermillion], Amanda [Noonan] and I do a good job of keeping the Creighton tennis tradition going, showing the freshmen what we expect and what it’s like to be on the tennis team,” Hartjes said. “I think [my role as a senior] is being a leader and setting a good example with good work ethic and encouraging and cheering my teammates on.”
“I think [Hartjes] has the respect of everyone, just because of the way she goes about things,” coach Tom Lilly said. “[Her teammates] can look and say ‘Is there someone I should model myself after?’ You don’t have to look anywhere else but our top player.”
Sophomore Katherine Nelsen praised Hartjes for her skills on and off the court.
“On top of her skills on the tennis court, she is also the most genuine person that I know. Jennie truly wants what is best for the team and that is very apparent,” Nelsen said. “She has determination and is always there to cheer on her teammates, even after a tough loss.
Hartjes and Lilly both agree that her backhand is her best shot, while her doubles partner, Nelsen, said that she believes her serve is the strongest part of her game. Though her overall game has improved a lot since her freshman season, Lilly said that specifically it’s her forehand shot that has seen the most improvement over the course of her career.
“Her backhand is her best shot; it’s the most consistent and she can drive it hard to add pace,” Lilly said. “When she came in, we worked a lot on her forehand that freshman year into sophomore year, and we have continued to. It’s become a weapon and almost as strong as her backhand.”
“I would say the best part of her game is her serve. Jennie is a left-handed player so she can put spin on it that no one can handle; it’s killer, and I hate returning her serve in practice,” Nelsen said.
Hartjes’ four-year career is coming to an end, as she is already at the midway point of her senior season. She said that she has made a lot of great memories in her time at Creighton, but none compare to all the matches of her career where it came down to her teammate in the No. 7 spot trying to clinch the fourth point to defeat the opponent 4-3 to win the match.
“There [have] been a lot [of great memories] over the years,” Hartjes said.
“My freshman year against Northern Iowa and last year against Northern Iowa again, just any of those matches where it comes down to the last person and you’re cheering your teammates on and you are watching those last few points. That is always really fun.”
The Creighton women’s tennis team is 3-7 on the season and has a three-match home stand beginning on Feb. 21 against Hastings College.
“We have had a lot of tough matches early on, so I think we have definitely been challenged already,” Hartjes said. “We need to keep improving our doubles so that when conference play comes around we will have a stronger doubles lineup. I think we are headed in a good direction, and if we keep improving until the end of the season, we will be able to compete well against teams in the Big East.”