TicketsCINCINNATI – Sophomore Hayley Hirsch is originally from the Cincinnati-area, graduating from Indian Hill high school in 2020. We caught up with the 513-native to learn more about what drew her to tennis and the Bearcats.
What made you stay in Cincinnati and how does it feel to play for your hometown?
"It wasn't really about the distance but visiting campus and meeting the team. It was such a great group of girls and a lot of them were from Cincinnati. I never planned on staying close to home, but it worked out well. It's so cool when you have family and friends come and see your matches and they can see what you're up to all the time. It's a really cool feeling."
How did you get started with tennis?
"My siblings played as well – my brother played at Illinois and my sister at Penn State. It was also something that I was good at. I think I was about 5 or 6 when I started playing. It wasn't my first choice, but it worked out well."
What do you love about the sport of tennis?
"When most people think of it, they think of it as an individual sport but it's so much more of a team sport. You can yell, scream, do whatever you want just to cheer on your team. I think what I like most about it is that you are united as a team even if it doesn't seem that way."
Who are your favorite tennis players?
"I love Serena Williams and I love Roger Federer, he just looks so fenesse-y on the court."
You guys are 12-3 this season, hoping to continue a 11-match win streak against Xavier on Saturday. What's been your highlight of the season from a personal and team standpoint?
"When we played IUPUI, it felt great to have a full sweep and we got our eleventh win in a row, it felt cool. It was also our first match outside; it was nice to earn that longest winning streak. Plus, we got Chipotle after."
The team is on a 11-match win streak, it's the longest win streak in program history. What does it mean for the program to be able to say that you've set a record that's going to go in the record books?
"This program has been improving for a while and with moving conferences, I think it gives us a lot of confidence going in. It's a really challenging conference that we'll be moving into. [Coach] Toth was right, it's a total team effort. The last eleven matches, everyone has played at least once. It's a good feeling and I think everyone is so happy with it and they want to keep it going so hopefully it'll be more than eleven."
What do you enjoy about this years' team?
"I like that everyone is so different; everyone is always doing their own thing, but we never run out of things to talk about. Everyone is always in a good mood; everyone is just fun to be around."
If you could describe this years' team in one word, what word would you use?
"Fun. It's nice not being a freshman anymore because you spend a year with these people still getting to know them. And then with the incoming freshman - I've known Elizabeth Pendergast since I was eight years old so it's nice to have some familiarity with someone coming in. Everyone gets along all the time, full of energy even at 7 a.m. when we're about to start lifting."
What are your personal goals that you hope to accomplish over the next few years?
"In the next few years, I hope to study and take the LSTAT. Something I also want to keep doing is supporting the team as much as I can for as long as I'm here. I also want to keep up my grades."
Where do you see yourself in five years?
"I am a Law and Society major, so I plan to go to law school after I graduate from UC. Hopefully, I will be in my final year of law school or will have already graduated and living in a cool city."
What attracted you to studying law and what path are you hoping to follow?
"I'm not sure how I decided on it, I just applied to UC with that major. Something about it always interested me and I turned out to love what I was learning. There are so many things you can do with it; I think I want to do criminal law because you meet so many new people. There are so many different avenues within that sect, but I'm not sure right now."
How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
"Delightful, energetic, and personable."
What do you like to do in your free time?
"I really like to do puzzles, especially a thousand-piece puzzles."
What is your favorite thing to do off campus?
"I love to eat, so just going to OTR, the restaurants there are so good. My favorite restaurant is Sotto, thieir Bolognese is so good. I like the vibe, it's underground. I also like Nada, that grew on me because their menu always changes."
UP NEXT
The Bearcats will head to Xavier University's campus on Saturday, March 26 to face off against the Musketeers at 2 p.m.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati tennis, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team (@GoBearcatsWTEN) and Head Coach Eric Toth (@EricToth1) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.
What made you stay in Cincinnati and how does it feel to play for your hometown?
"It wasn't really about the distance but visiting campus and meeting the team. It was such a great group of girls and a lot of them were from Cincinnati. I never planned on staying close to home, but it worked out well. It's so cool when you have family and friends come and see your matches and they can see what you're up to all the time. It's a really cool feeling."
How did you get started with tennis?
"My siblings played as well – my brother played at Illinois and my sister at Penn State. It was also something that I was good at. I think I was about 5 or 6 when I started playing. It wasn't my first choice, but it worked out well."
What do you love about the sport of tennis?
"When most people think of it, they think of it as an individual sport but it's so much more of a team sport. You can yell, scream, do whatever you want just to cheer on your team. I think what I like most about it is that you are united as a team even if it doesn't seem that way."
Who are your favorite tennis players?
"I love Serena Williams and I love Roger Federer, he just looks so fenesse-y on the court."
You guys are 12-3 this season, hoping to continue a 11-match win streak against Xavier on Saturday. What's been your highlight of the season from a personal and team standpoint?
"When we played IUPUI, it felt great to have a full sweep and we got our eleventh win in a row, it felt cool. It was also our first match outside; it was nice to earn that longest winning streak. Plus, we got Chipotle after."
The team is on a 11-match win streak, it's the longest win streak in program history. What does it mean for the program to be able to say that you've set a record that's going to go in the record books?
"This program has been improving for a while and with moving conferences, I think it gives us a lot of confidence going in. It's a really challenging conference that we'll be moving into. [Coach] Toth was right, it's a total team effort. The last eleven matches, everyone has played at least once. It's a good feeling and I think everyone is so happy with it and they want to keep it going so hopefully it'll be more than eleven."
What do you enjoy about this years' team?
"I like that everyone is so different; everyone is always doing their own thing, but we never run out of things to talk about. Everyone is always in a good mood; everyone is just fun to be around."
If you could describe this years' team in one word, what word would you use?
"Fun. It's nice not being a freshman anymore because you spend a year with these people still getting to know them. And then with the incoming freshman - I've known Elizabeth Pendergast since I was eight years old so it's nice to have some familiarity with someone coming in. Everyone gets along all the time, full of energy even at 7 a.m. when we're about to start lifting."
What are your personal goals that you hope to accomplish over the next few years?
"In the next few years, I hope to study and take the LSTAT. Something I also want to keep doing is supporting the team as much as I can for as long as I'm here. I also want to keep up my grades."
Where do you see yourself in five years?
"I am a Law and Society major, so I plan to go to law school after I graduate from UC. Hopefully, I will be in my final year of law school or will have already graduated and living in a cool city."
What attracted you to studying law and what path are you hoping to follow?
"I'm not sure how I decided on it, I just applied to UC with that major. Something about it always interested me and I turned out to love what I was learning. There are so many things you can do with it; I think I want to do criminal law because you meet so many new people. There are so many different avenues within that sect, but I'm not sure right now."
How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
"Delightful, energetic, and personable."
What do you like to do in your free time?
"I really like to do puzzles, especially a thousand-piece puzzles."
What is your favorite thing to do off campus?
"I love to eat, so just going to OTR, the restaurants there are so good. My favorite restaurant is Sotto, thieir Bolognese is so good. I like the vibe, it's underground. I also like Nada, that grew on me because their menu always changes."
UP NEXT
The Bearcats will head to Xavier University's campus on Saturday, March 26 to face off against the Musketeers at 2 p.m.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati tennis, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team (@GoBearcatsWTEN) and Head Coach Eric Toth (@EricToth1) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.