By Gary Davidson
Congratulations to Kellyn Abbanat of Coral Springs who has received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy for the class of 2019. She is also a blue chip recruit for the women’s tennis team. The Naval Academy is the undergraduate college of the US Navy and Marine Corps. As one of the country’s premier officer training programs, the Naval Academy has educated and prepared commissioned officers for Naval Service since 1845.
Already a seasoned junior tennis player by age 12, Kellyn won numerous National titles and was attracting the attention of college coaches. One of the many introductory letters she received was a letter from Keith Puryear, head coach of the women’s tennis team at the Naval Academy. Framed by her parents and hung on the wall of her bedroom, that letter provided Kellyn with many years of inspiration and a goal to reach. Other letters came from other college coaches for the next few years, but Kellyn was not interested. She was all in for the Naval Academy!
A typical day for Kellyn starts at 7 AM in the gym working with her strength trainer, Dorian Mirasola, followed by 2 to 4 hours of tennis practice. The rest of the day is spent on schoolwork through the Florida Connections Academy. Most weekends are spent on the court playing in tournaments throughout Florida and the United States. Florida’s junior tennis competition is the most competitive in the country. Kellyn might play her friend in one match and the #1 junior tennis player in the Ukraine in the next.
For the last three years, she has started for the varsity tennis team for Stoneman Douglas High School at the #1 position in singles and doubles with a record of 43-5. Kellyn is a four-star recruit on tennisrecruiting.net and has consistently maintained a top 50 Florida USTA ranking.
Gabriel Matteazzi, Kellyn’s tennis coach, said, “Competitive tennis gave me the opportunity to make her understand the importance of discipline, consistency, and focus to achieve her goals”.
Not neglecting academics, Kellyn has worked hard to meet the high academic standards of the Naval Academy. Drawing from the discipline and determination learned though tennis, Kellyn met all the academic goals set for her by the Naval Academy. Kellyn received a congressional nomination from Representative Ted Deutch in November.
Kellyn’s teacher Jane Ruppert said, “She demonstrates effective time-management skills by balancing training, tennis practice, academics, and giving back to the community.”
Next summer, Kellyn will join the rest of the Naval Academy class of 2019 in Annapolis, Maryland playing for the women’s tennis team, continuing to represent the city of Coral Springs.