Cecelia FranciscoThink you know the Cabrini College men’s tennis team, bet you don’t. See if you can guess who this tennis pro is- hint number one: he is a former member of the number one division II men’s tennis team at Rollins College in Orlando, Fla. Hint number two: he has been playing tennis since he was five, working his way up through the United States Tennis Association tournaments from the time he was 12 until he was 18.
Still not sure about who this tennis buff is or where to find him? Try the tennis courts at Cabrini College or if you are feeling a little spontaneous show up some Saturday night at Lucy’s bar in Olde City and you just might find senior tennis superstar Taylor Duffy lounging with his roommates drinking a Yuengling.
Born and raised in Chestnut Hill, Pa, Duffy is finishing his second academic year here at Cabrini all while moving right up through the tennis ranks in the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference. Duffy plays number two singles and number one doubles with fellow senior and team captain Scott Giblin. In 2001, Duffy and Giblin finished first team doubles all-conference.
“It was my mom who got me into tennis when I was five,” Duffy said. “I started out playing on Pier 3 in Philadelphia, but I don’t even know if it still exists!” “I played for Chestnut Hill Academy because I went there from kindergarten through twelfth grade. I also played at the Germantown Croquet and Tennis Club and the Cheltenham Racquet Club.”
It was after graduation that Duffy was recruited by Rollins College in Orlando, Fla. “Rollins College is known for their men’s tennis program. They have won a couple of NCAA titles and they are the number one division II team in the country,” Duffy said. “I was at Rollins for two years but I wasn’t making a lot of headway in their tennis program.”
Now two years later Duffy is closer to home and spending a lot more time with his younger brother and on the courts playing for Cabrini College men’s tennis team head coach Reggie Day. “When I decided to transfer I wanted to stay with a small school and I was interested in the communications field,” Duffy said. Duffy’s relationship with Day over the years led him to play for him at Cabrini. “Reggie was looking at me when I was coming out of high school but I decided to go to Rollins instead so when I came home this is where I decided to go.”
Tennis-wise Duffy believes that he is getting more up here then he was in Florida. “I really do like playing for this program, I knew we were going to go far this season and that we were going to make big advances for the program for the following years to come,” Duffy said.
However, tennis is not the only thing on Duffy’s mind these days. “I have been at my internship at And1, a basketball product company, in Paoli for the past 18 months working in their public relations department. I deal with product placement,” Duffy said. When asked about after graduation plans, which will be here in December, “I hope to stay on with And1; if not then I still have one more semester of tennis eligibility left,” Duffy said jokingly.
However, not everyone can play tennis 24 hours a day so if not on the courts, it is safe to assume that Duffy is at a 76ers game. “I try to make it to as many games as possible; I guess you can say I am a big fan of the 76ers,” Duffy said. “I also like to go into the city a lot, especially South Street and Olde City.” When asked the inevitable of what he would bring if stranded on a desert island, “I guess I would bring water, a bathing suit and um a hat, yeah I would bring a hat.”
As college and the 2003 season winds down to an end, Duffy knows how fortunate he was to play this season with the men’s tennis team. “My teammates are a great bunch of guys on and off the court. I love to play here because I am doing it for the team,” Duffy said. “We have played the last half of the season in dedication and memory of Scott’s father who passed away a few weeks ago. It has been very important for us all to be there for Scott and to let him know we appreciate him as a teammate and his father’s support of our program.”
Posted to the Web by Angelina Wagner
