Rachel Dwyer has a medal.
"Basketball? I wasn't good at that," Dwyer said. "I was told I was too nice to play. I played softball, but I didn't like the heat."
This is a girl who wasn't good at any other sports. One who, when discussing her trademark aviators, said this: "When I was a little kid, I was really dorky and loved wearing sunglasses while I played tennis."
This is a girl who can trace her aspirations to be an orthopedic surgeon to a singular moment in middle school: "I'd hurt my knee. I was a klutz, so I went to a sports doctor, and he helped me through and got me rehabilitated."
Too hot outside for softball. Too nice a person for basketball. A one-time dork and klutz. But now, Rachel Dwyer has a medal.
The rising senior at Glendale rode a 25-7 season in singles matches to a quarterfinals spot at this year's Class 2 state tournament, the greatest accomplishment of her tennis career, so far.
"That was a really big deal for me," she said. "I had worked so hard the past season to medal at state."
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An only child, Dwyer picked up tennis as an eight year old after all other sports failed her.
"I was bored and wanted something fun to do," she said.
Dwyer began her path at the Gillenwaters Tennis Complex, soon followed by academy classes at the Cooper Tennis Complex, where she still plays for up to three hours a day, five days a week.
Success borne in mental strength
"I love the sport because it's mentally challenging," Dwyer said.
"It's not just going through the motions. I have to think about what I'm doing and really focus. It's making sure I hit the correct strokes and that I'm mentally strong. I feel tennis is 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical. That 90 percent is when I love it the most."
Dwyer embodies composure, may that be on the court or off it. She's mature beyond her high school years, a quality that long-time Glendale head tennis coach Bob Cooper saw from the start.
"Rachel's biggest strength is her mental makeup," Cooper said. "She doesn't get too high or too low. She's able to hit the reset button on each and every point and set. That's her greatest asset, and it's sometimes unusual in a young player to be able to do that."
Dwyer is aggressive at the baseline. She possesses a powerful forehand and an even more powerful serve. Cooper classifies the two strokes as Dwyer's weapons, but that arsenal isn't limited to the court.
This year, Dwyer was the recipient of the Tennis Athlete of the Year award from Springfield's Community Olympic Development Program, an honor that not only takes results on the court into consideration, but an athlete's impact on the community as well.
A humanitarian on and off the court
"I volunteer through the Girls' Service Society at my high school," Dwyer said.
Through that society, Dwyer has volunteered her time to assist with organizations and programs around Springfield like the Ozarks Food Harvest, Newborns in Need and the ALS Association.
"It's volunteering to help people who can't help themselves," she said. "Community service is a great way to get involved. I don't have an ulterior motive, I just wanted to help the Springfield area."
When not practicing three hours a day, helping those in need or winning state medals, Dwyer is helping kids at the Cooper Tennis Complex learn the sport that she was meant to love.
"I love my kids," Dwyer said. "They're just adorable. I love doing it."
"I find that heartwarming," Cooper said. "I've seen her work with little ones and she just lights up when she's got those five and six years old out there. It's a very neat thing for me to see, how she's enjoyed the game and now is starting to impart that joy and pay some of the things she's received forward."
While she loves coaching, the hidden klutz in Dwyer wants to be an orthopedic surgeon. Do unto others, as the saying goes.
"I would love that," she said. "That's my dream, to help athletes. I've always loved the medical field. When I found a doctor as great as the one who helped me in middle school who loved his job and loved what he did every day, that inspired me."
Carrying the torch
With one year of high school remaining, Dwyer represents the force behind a new awakening for Glendale's tennis program.
After 20 years at the helm at Glendale and 41 years as a coach, Cooper sent in a letter of resignation at the end of last season to focus on himself and his family.
"I'm going to miss him," Dwyer said. "He really taught me good sportsmanship. He wanted us to know we did a great job no matter the outcome, to be together as a team, and know that our opponents weren't our enemies.
"I think I will take on more responsibility as a leader with him gone. It's such a transition phase, and the girls need some direction. We still have some work to do."
There's always more work to do, but that medal around your neck sure makes it feel nicer.
