Lauren Okrainec '24 Recruiting Profile

Hi, my name is Lauren Mary Okrainec. I started playing tennis when I was 7 years old. I love that in tennis you are able to create your own destiny; everything is up to you when you are on the court. Tennis can be very difficult at times because of that, but the grind and the fight is what I live for. Ever since the beginning I have been a fighter, and that's what makes me special. I played my first ever OTA (Ontario Tennis Association) match when I was 9 years old, in a U10 tournament. I was totally new to the world of competitive tennis, and in my first match I had to play the number 3 ranked girl in Ontario. My parents told me to have fun and just try my best, I then went out and earned my first win. Ever since then I have been hooked on tennis.

My goal, ever since I was young, has always been to get a scholarship at an American University. I love the idea of being able to further my studies while I get to play the sport I love. I see it as an adventure: to explore a new country, travel to different places for tournaments, and meet new people. I think I would be an excellent addition to many university teams because I truly love the game of tennis and am always looking for ways to learn and grow as a player, plus I am highly coachable. I am already a skilled tennis player, but I think that the tennis environment of university would benefit my game greatly. At university I want to do my part for the team and try to improve my tennis game. I am a very sweet, kind, optimistic, and driven person. I work well on a team because I am good at leading, communicating, and encouraging others in a positive way to try their best. I love being able to figure things out on the court by myself, but I'm also really looking forward to the team environment at university. 

I have accomplished a lot in my tennis career so far and am excited for this next chapter. In total I have won 30 OTA tournaments. My biggest win was the 2019 U14 Grass Court Championships (4 star). I've also won 3 Provincial Circuit Plus tournaments (3.5 star), and 14 Provincial Circuit tournaments (3 star). In 2019 I finished 7/8 at U14 Indoor Provincials (5 star), and that result earned me a spot at Nationals, where Team Ontario won the team competition. In 2021 I finished 4th at U18 Outdoor Provincials (5 star), and again made Nationals. I've played Nationals twice, which is the biggest OTA tournament in the year. In 2019 I went to Florida and won the U14 IMG Discovery Open, and that result got me into the Eddie Herr qualifying. 

I've played a lot of OTA tournaments but I've also had impressive results in other tournaments. I won the Ladies Club Championship at the Stratford Tennis Club when I was only 11 years old, breaking the record for the youngest champion of the tournament. I adapted well to the green clay and showed my mental toughness, which garnered me the nickname the "smiling assassin". I have now won this tournament 6 years in a row. Also, this year I played high school tennis for the first time. I played first singles position on our team and took a leadership role, assisting the coach in coaching and training our team. I really enjoyed the team aspect of high school tennis, and I loved representing my school, it gave me extra motivation. I won our regional tournament, TVRAA, and also won our district tournament, WOSSAA. I then made it to OFSAA, which is all of Ontario. I ended up finishing 5/6 at OFSAA.

I've been playing tennis for 10 years now, and it is my main focus, but before I played tennis I did gymnastics, swimming, and dance. I feel that these sports helped improve my balance, strength, and overall athleticism. I also did well at track and field in elementary school; my race was 1500 m. In grades 5-7 I made regionals, and in grade 8 I finished 2nd at regionals and made it to finals. Outside of tennis I really enjoy instruments. I play the trumpet, guitar, and a bit of ukulele. I was in the school choir from grades 4-6 and the school band in grade 7 and 8.

Next, I'd like to talk about my academics. What makes me different is that I genuinely enjoy school and learning. I work really hard to do the best I can in every assignment, and this type of attitude also transitions over into my tennis game. I try to get 100% on every assignment; this perfectionist attitude can be a blessing and a curse, but I try to utilize it in the most positive way possible. I have a 4.0 GPA and my high school average right now is 93%. My school does not offer AP or honours courses; university level is the highest level and I have taken all of my core courses at that level. I'm particularly good at math and science, and I am looking to take a major in the STEM field. In 2019 I placed in the top 10% at the grade 7 and 8 level in the Caribou Mathematics Contest, which covers all of Ontario. I also won the math and music awards at grade 8 graduation. Additionally, I was online for the first 3 years of high school, which is why I did not do high school tennis until this year. The benefit of online school is that you get to work at your own pace, but it is difficult because there is no structure, and no teacher. I had to teach myself the course material, and this experience taught me to be disciplined, to manage my time well, and to take responsibility for my own learning. My grades were excellent while I did online school, and when I went back to in-person school I didn't miss a beat. My grade 12 chemistry teacher said she was blown away with how well I adapted to in-person learning. Overall, I am a very strong student and tennis player and I can't wait to move onto the next level for athletics and academics.

Thank you for reading my personal statement! Please check out my skills video and match play video. I look forward to hearing from you and maybe playing for your team one day.