Wildcats Tennis Coach Tony Martinez was afraid he might choke up while talking about senior Jonah Kirkpatrick, who signed a letter of intent Tuesday morning (February 25) to attend and play college tennis at East Texas Baptist University in Marshall. Coach Martinez said he began coaching Kirkpatrick in his first year playing tennis in the seventh grade at Sulphur Springs Middle School. Now Kirkpatrick is the captain of the varsity Wildcats Tennis Team. He’s been a varsity tennis team member for four years. Kirkpatrick says he has wanted to play tennis in college since the seventh grade. He learned more about the ETBU program at a showcase event in August. They liked him and gave him an offer which he accepted. Kirkpatrick says ETBU has a good program and he adds he’s excited to be a part of it. Kirkpatrick has excelled at both singles and doubles as a Wildcat. He says he may well continue to play both singles and doubles at ETBU but he says he prefers doubles. Kirkpatrick is currently matched with sophomore Jeauxleigh Cantu on the Wildcats highly successful mixed doubles team. They took first place at a John Tyler sponsored Tyler tournament on Friday. Kirkpatrick says Cantu is a solid player and a great doubles partner. He says she covers parts of the court he can’t get to and he notes they have each other’s back. Kirkpatrick has high hopes the duo will be advancing from district to regional and perhaps even state this season. Kirkpatrick likes the town of Marshall and especially the university there, He says he wants to become a tennis coach. Coach Martinez is not surprised by that. He says Kirkpatrick is always available to help younger members of the team. Coach Martinez says Kirkpatrick will do well at ETBU. He says he excels at all facets of tennis and is good at both singles and doubles. He says Kirkpatrick has good hands that tennis coaches are looking for.
KSST is proud to be the official Wildcat and Lady Cat Station. We broadcast Sulphur Springs ISD games year round live on radio. When allowed, we also broadcast games via our YouTube channel.
