The Iowa women’s tennis team just got stronger.
Transferring to Iowa for her senior season, Zuzana Chmelarova last attended No. 6 Baylor University, which boasts three players in the top 50 and has stood atop the Big 12 standings during the last five years.
But even though the Midwestern tennis scene is humble, Chmelarova is no stranger to the spotlight. She was ranked as high No. 29 in the Czech Republic’s under-18 polls and was recruited by Baylor as a freshman out of the highly regarded Gymnazium a Sportovni Gymnazium — a gym in Prague that has produced great tennis talent over the years.
Named an All-Big 12 honoree for her doubles play as a sophomore in 2008, Chmelarova was hoping to take the next step forward last year with the Bears. But with such a high level of intrasquad competition at her former school, she had a hard time finding the court, so she came to Iowa.
“I didn’t get enough playing time,” she said. “At Baylor, I was limited to improve as much as I wanted.”
The Hawkeyes were happy to have her and aren’t planning to place any limits on her development. However, the Iowa coaching staff would like to see her return to the form that landed her the all-conference distinction.
Chmelarova hopes to improve her play and give the team a hand as well.
“I will try my best to help the team to do well this upcoming season,” she said. “My goal is to make the NCAA Tournament as a team.”
The last few years of college have breezed by, and now, Chmelarova finds herself taking full advantage of quite possibly one last opportunity at the collegiate level.
She has been in the United States for only three years, but she has relished the opportunity to be in America and play tennis. She came here for very specific reasons but has found experiences that will last a lifetime.
“I came to the United States because I could be a student and tennis player at the same time,” she said. “It has been a great experience to learn a new language, meet new people, learn about a different culture, and travel around the United States.”
A proven competitor, Chmelarova is in position to drastically improve the Hawkeyes this season, bringing a lot of Division-I experience, which is something Iowa possessed very little of last year.
“Last year, we didn’t have any seniors, and half our team were playing their first season of competition,” he said. “This year, we don’t have any freshmen and three seniors, including Zuzi. We have grown up quickly.”
He was happy to bring in such an experienced player as Chmelarova because he knows what he can expect from her, he said.
“With a true freshman recruit, it is sometimes difficult to tell how they will respond to collegiate competition,” he said. “Zuzi has three years of collegiate competition under her belt, and she knows what she is capable of. And we know what we are getting.”