By Bob McPhee,Staff Writer

DIXFIELD – Jenn Harvey discovered at an early age that life’s lessons can be taught on the tennis court.

The Dirigo High School senior has aced her grandfather’s valuable piece of advice. Her hard work has propelled her on the court and in the classroom.

“My grandfather first drew me to tennis,” Harvey said. “He has played all his life, even through knee surgery, prostate cancer, a pacemaker and numerous heart surgeries. The strength and endurance that tennis gives you allowed him to survive the obstacles that life presented. This and the satisfaction of individual competition also brought me to tennis.”

This spring, Harvey has performed consistently as the No. 1 singles player. She will drop a notch, of sorts, while donning a different cap when she graduates second in her class.

Harvey earned first-team honors in the Mountain Valley Conference in 2004 and is currently 9-2 as the Cougars are playoff-bound again.

This is the third straight season that Harvey has played at No. 1 singles.

As a freshman, Harvey started near the bottom of the ladder, but won eight of 10 exhibition matches. That team was loaded with seniors, and she really looked up to Peggy Gill and Jenn Carter. Both were strong players who could hit the ball well, and Harvey took note. She attended Dirigo coach Art Chamberlin’s summer tennis camp and played the sport often with her family. The following spring she moved up to No. 1 singles.

“I have had the privilege of coaching some fine No. 1 players since 1981,” Chamberlin said. “Few, if any, of them have worked as hard to improve their game as Jenn has. She has developed not only her physical game but greatly improved her mental game. She has set a great example for her teammates with her work ethic and true sportsmanship.”

Harvey believes her athletic background, playing on successful soccer and basketball teams, has contributed to her tennis game. Basketball helped her learn to anticipate the ball better and improved her court awareness.

Harvey enjoys the individual aspect of tennis because all the pressure shifts from being shouldered by five or 10 people to just you.

“It’s not only a battle against the opponent, it’s a battle against yourself,” Harvey said. “To be a successful tennis player, you not only have to forget about those pressures, but enjoy the thrill of competition as well, and that’s what I like about it.”

Harvey often finds herself getting wrapped up in the match and has to take a few seconds to collect her thoughts. She tries to keep things in perspective.

“I find that I have to take time to calm down before a match,” Harvey said. “I often overanalyze how the other player will play or the weather conditions, often things I can’t control. I usually have my pre-game granola bar and start walking around to get warmed up.”

Harvey has lost to Jessica Chaney of Boothbay and Ali Dick of Winthrop this spring. Her match against Dick was a three-set, two-hour, 30-minute marathon – 6-7, 6-4, 3-6.

Shot selection may be Harvey’s biggest area of improvement. Last Tuesday, she came back from 0-3 in the first set to win 7-5, then breezed 6-0 in the second set. Harvey adjusted her strategy when her Hall-Dale opponent kept coming too close to the net. Harvey would lob her and, if her opponent ran it down, she’d short-court her.

Harvey, who has a 95.4 grade-point average, is an active member of the National Honor Society and Big Brothers Big Sisters. She’s also Student Council President and participates in the Cougars’ Peer Presenters program.

She plans to study at American University in Washington D.C., in the fall, to major in International Business, with a minor in Spanish.