The Arizona women’s tennis team has been taken by storm by sophomore Lauren Marker, who is currently ranked 15th in the region. Marker grew up in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and, despite moving three times, still stayed in the same country club. She said she originally got into tennis when she was 4 years old and grew up in a tennis family, as her father and younger brother played the game as well.

“I used to go watch him at our club all the time playing with his friends, and then he kind of got me into it,” Marker said about her father. “He coached me all the way throughout high school until I graduated, so it was a cool bond.” 

Marker said her parents have always supported her, with her dad missing work to put in the time and effort to help her and her brother with, among other things, tennis. 

“My dad would always miss work just to take me to my tournaments and come home early from work to practice with me and feed me balls,” Marker said. “He just puts a lot of time and effort into my brother’s and [my] game.”

For Marker it was a big accomplishment to reach her goal of becoming ranked, a feat she says doesn’t change the way she plays her game.

“It did give me a confidence boost,” Marker said. “It let me know that I was right up there with the top players in the country. I knew that I could compete with anyone, so it gave me a confidence boost. But I don’t think my game changed because of a ranking.”

Even though Marker said she loves playing tennis, she also played soccer and tried track. Off the court, she said she has a passion for festivals and concerts. Marker is majoring in pre-business right now and hoping to be involved in management and entrepreneurship.

“I love and have a passion for festivals and concerts, so I would love to do production and booking for that,” Marker said.
That love of music is one of the many traits Marker said was passed down from her father, who is involved in the music industry.

“My family is in the music business, so that was also another inspiration for me,” Marker said. “My dad produces concerts and stuff, so I thought that was super cool. I grew up around live music all the time, and just having that around me and having a passion for that kind of just made me want to get into the industry.”

On the court, Marker didn’t play enough matches in the fall to be in the first ranking in January, so she said her hope is to be back in the updated rankings.

Next up on the schedule, Marker and the Wildcats take on NAU on Saturday at 10 a.m.

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Follow Stevie Katz on Twitter.