Kirsten Patton's love of tennis has brought her from the courts of
Georgetown, Ky., all the way to the French Open and Wimbledon as a
physical therapist/athletic trainer for the pros, and in between, a
career that made her the best women's player in College of Wooster
history.
Growing up in a suburb of Lexington, where most of the population
is interested in horse racing or bluegrass, Patton found her niche
in athletics at an early age.
"My parents played a lot of tennis, and I used to go to the courts
with them," explained Patton in a 1986 interview. "When I got a
little older, I started hitting around with my mother. She was an
excellent player, but she never really gave me any formal training.
Just hitting with her was a valuable experience."
During her pre-teen years, Patton became a top junior player in
tennis, and she was also heavily involved and successful in
swimming. Thinking she could be "mediocre at both sports" or "excel
in one," Patton chose the latter option and went with tennis
because she thought she could be better and liked it more.
Patton played No. 1 singles for Scott County High School starting
in eighth grade and remained in that position for five years. When
it came time to find a college, she followed the same path of her
brother, Kim, who played football for the Fighting Scots. Little
sis had come up to see him play occasionally and fell in love with
Wooster, too.
"(It) turned out to be my one and only choice for college."
While she immediately earned the No. 1 singles position for the
Scots, Patton's collegiate career started slowly with a 6-4 singles
record and 4-6 mark in doubles as a freshman. The threat of a
challenger « Kam Su-Shuin, who was the top player in all of
Malaysia at the time « to her No. 1 spot in the lineup her
sophomore season may have been the best thing to happen to Patton
during her time at Wooster. She raised her level of play to win
back her spot at the top of the lineup and went on to victory in a
school-record 19 of 21 singles matches, highlighted by winning the
Great Lakes Colleges Association Championships at No. 1 singles and
receiving one of 32 bids to the NCAA Div. III Championships
(singles).
Utilizing her great mental toughness and tenacity, according to
former coaches Mary Beth Skelly and Chris Hart, the baseliner
posted similar records of 17-4 and 18-5 as a junior and senior,
respectively, and appeared in the NCAA's each season again. She
also successfully defended her GLCA title in 1987.
Patton's career record of 60-15 (.800), all at No. 1 singles, puts
her first in school history in career wins, 17 more than the
second-best total at No. 1, and winning percentage, and she remains
the lone Scot to have played in the NCAA Championships. She
contributed another 48 wins in doubles (48-26; .649).
When not honing her tennis skills or hitting the books as a
history major at Wooster, Patton was a student athletic trainer all
four years (1984-88). That helped lead to her current career,
rubbing shoulders, both figuratively and literally, with the most
famous women's athletes in the world. She's worked with all the
greats, including Jennifer Capriati, Lindsay Davenport, Steffi
Graf, Monica Seles, Maria Sharpova, Venus and Serena Wiliams,
etcs., at tournaments all around the world. Currently, Patton, who
lives in Nocona, Texas, and spends her leisure time playing golf,
just works tourneys in the United States.
"I am proud of the opportunities I have had in my career, a large
part because of Wooster," Patton summed up. "I've been exposed to
many different cultures, medical practices, and personalities while
working with the top tennis players from around the globe."
