Tigers’ Anna Gullickson plays key role in tennis

As the Lewis and Clark High School girls tennis team begins what it hopes will be a highly successful trip into the postseason, it doesn’t take Tiger head coach John Kenlein long to figure a big reason for their regular season triumphs.

“The strength of our lineup this year was in our junior ranks,” said Kenlein.

Juniors Tana Webb, Leslie Griffith, Ann Marie Kimmel, Hannah Palmer, Kasey King and Anna Gullickson have been a huge part of the Tigers’ ascent to the head of the Greater Spokane League this season. Success usually starts at the top, and the Tigers have proved to be no exception, as their No. 1 player Gullickson looks to lead the way as the defending GSL singles champion.

“The target probably is on me a little more, but I just try not to let that pressure get to me,” said Gullickson. “I think I’m a much better player than I was as a freshman.

“I’ve gone through some ups and downs through the years. I’ve really had to work on my mental game, but that’s coming together right now. I’ve always had to work on my physical part, my quickness.

“Being really tall, I’m not really small or fast, so I have to work on that. Overall though, my game’s improved a lot.”

Her opponents throughout the league would tend to agree, as the 5-foot-11 inch Gullickson’s tennis prowess can be traced to a power game similar to a Randy Johnson fastball.

“A dominating serve, pounding baseline ground strokes, and when she chooses to come up, her height makes it nearly impossible to lob her,” said Kenlein. “She puts the ball away.

“That big lefty serve is pretty tough to combat and pretty tough to return.”

“I think my serve is probably my strongest part,” Gullickson said. “I’ve had to work on my serve a lot.

“It’s probably the most powerful part of my game. I can utilize it and win a lot of points off my serve.”

“I feel I have a pretty good baseline game, but I do try to get points by coming up to the net,” she continued. “I don’t serve and volley; that’s more a guy’s game.”

Gullickson isn’t just a maestro on the court either. Besides being a 4.0 student, Gullickson is an accomplished musician, playing both the violin and piano. She began playing music in the fourth grade and has found it an asset to her tennis.

“When we did orchestra for school, it was between taking orchestra or Spanish,” Gullickson said. “I wasn’t really fond of Spanish class back then, so I decided to try it, and I really liked it. I guess there’s a correlation between the two.

“In music, you have to stay focused and want to have the determination to practice. Tennis is the same thing. You have to be determined, and you have to be diligent about your practicing.

“If you practice, you’ll be successful, and they kind of go hand in hand.”

An avid tennis fan, Gullickson hopes her tennis will show the improvement of another tall American.

“My favorite player is Lindsay Davenport because she’s tall and has a big serve,” said Gullickson. “She seems to be more of an all-court player, kind of like I am.

“She may look slow, but she has a big wingspan. I look up to her.”

Gullickson, whose brother Ben plays No. 2 singles for the Tiger boys team, hopes to look forward to a big postseason for the Tigers, who knocked off perennial power Gonzaga Prep on their way to the GSL title this year.

“It was exciting,” said Gullickson. “We tried not to overjoy too much while we were there. It was a great feeling to have beaten them, because they’ve won the GSL the past seven, eight years in a row.

“It boosted our confidence level to see what we could actually really do.”

“We had such a great team this year,” she said. “It was all about what the team did.

“Most of our team is juniors, and we were a very close team this year. We all get along great, and we’re all supporting each other. My goal is to just take it one step at a time.

“I try not to get too far ahead of myself. I take what comes at me.

“I’d really like to be successful this year in postseason.”