Tyrone’s Stricek to Play Tennis at Penn State Altoona
Tyrone senior Rachel Stricek, a four-year starter for the Tyrone Lady Eagles Tennis team, will continue her academic and athletic career at Penn State Altoona in the fall.
“Rachel played great all four years of her high school career,” said Tyrone head tennis coach Randy Irvin, “We used her in both singles and doubles. She was a wonderful player to coach because she would step up into any role the team needed her to play and never complain about it.”
Stricek plans to major in early childhood education at PSUA.
The choice of Penn State Altoona was an easy one for Stricek, who likes that it has all the advantages of a Penn State education on a small-scale 3,000-student campus.
Penn State Altoona’s women’s tennis team competes in NCAA Division III and posted a 4-7 record last season. They are coached by Hollidaysburg native Megan Stern, who is also the head coach of the PSUA men’s tennis program. Stern was a standout player at Hollidaysburg High School from 2007 to 2010 and went on to play collegiately at Division II Clarion University.
“Penn State Altoona has a smaller campus, it had my major, and I would be able to play on the tennis team…and the campus was also beautiful,” said Stricek when asked why she chose Penn State Altoona.
Stricek has been set on going to Penn State since she began thinking about college, so she didn’t really look into any other schools.
According to Stricek, the thing she will miss most about high school tennis is playing with her teammates and the away matches.
“My favorite memory is placing second in the district doubles tournament with my partner Victoria Reese,” said Stricek.
Irvin thinks that Stricek will do very well in college and fit in nicely on Penn State Altoona’s tennis squad.
“Rachel is a very hardworking, smart, and talented tennis player. She has a great all-around game, and worked hard every day at practice. She was a wonderful teammate on and off the court,” said Irvin. “Rachel will be a major contributor to Penn State Altoona tennis program just like she was here at Tyrone.”
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