Oklahoma State University Athletics
Lushkova Gears Up for 2014-15 Season
October 13, 2014 | Cowgirl Tennis
By Harry Endicott
OSU Media Relations
All-American, Big 12 Freshman of the Year, All-Big 12 in singles, All-Big 12 in doubles, two Big 12 Player of the Week awards, a 19-5 record while competing against the best players in the conference and around the country; these are just a handful of accomplishments that current Cowgirl sophomore Viktoriya Lushkova garnered in her first semester at Oklahoma State before she even turned 18.
A native of Simferopol, Ukraine, Lushkova began playing tennis at age six just for fun. It wasn't long before she became more serious about the sport.
“I played twice a week, just to be healthy,” Lushkova said. “Then, I started practicing about once a day, six times a week when I was almost eight years old. I just went with the flow. I liked playing and my parents said that I should go with it. Many times, I would get injured and decide to stop, but I would find motivation to play again because I had practiced for so long.”
That motivation has brought her to Stillwater, where she has found great success with head coach Chris Young and the Cowgirl tennis team in the beautiful new Michael and Anne Greenwood Tennis Center. The facility has played a huge part in reviving the historically strong tennis programs at Oklahoma State.
After a successful junior tennis career, Lushkova was confident that her talents would translate to the college level.
“I was confident that I could do something here,” Lushkova said. “I played really well in juniors. I didn't think that college would be that hard, but it actually is. I was happy at the end of last semester that I had so much success.”
After a 1-1 start in her first pair of matches against collegiate opponents, Lushkova rattled off an impressive 12 straight victories that helped catapult her name into the ITA singles rankings.
One of the most impressive victories during the streak was Lushkova's dramatic three-set win over Oklahoma senior Whitney Ritchie that clinched the 4-2 Cowgirl victory over the Sooners in front of a national TV audience on ESPN's College MatchDay.
“That was something that I will probably never forget,” Lushkova said. “I had never felt that nervous before a match in my life, even before Grand Slams. I felt so much pressure because I didn't want to play bad on that day against OU. I wanted to beat them.”
Lushkova's streak helped push the Cowgirls to a 6-0 start in conference play for the first time since 1991, and landed the team in Big 12 title conversations after only being picked fifth in the preseason poll.
The Cowgirls finished second in Big 12 with a 7-2 conference record. The squad made a run to the Big 12 championship match for the second-straight season, but fell to top-seeded Baylor in a 4-1 match. The finish was good enough to land the Cowgirls a spot as a No. 2 seed in the Gainesville, Fla., NCAA Tournament regional where the team advanced to the second round with a dominant 4-0 win over South Florida.
Lushkova and the Cowgirls got off to a hot start against top-seeded Florida in the second round of the tournament, taking the doubles point for an early, 1-0 lead. The Gators were too much to handle in singles, however, and defeated the Cowgirls, 4-1, ending the team's season.
“That match just showed us that we have to work harder,” Lushkova said. “We can compete against good teams and we can actually beat them. We need to step up more and be more confident. We can't be scared of the name of the school. You just have to play your game and be respectful to your teammates. You can't give up on easy points. Just work and try your best. As long as we do that, we will be great.”
After returning to Stillwater from Gainesville, Lushkova began preparation for the NCAA Individual Championships. Lushkova was the first Cowgirl to be selected to compete in the singles draw since 2002, and if she advanced to the tournament's round of 32, she would become the first Cowgirl tennis All-American since 1991.
After rolling in her first-round match, Lushkova knocked off 14th-ranked Olivia Janowicz of Florida, 7-5, 7-5, in her second-round match to clinch All-America honors.
“I had never heard of All-American,” Lushkova laughed. “Before the match (Coach Young) told me if I won I was going to be All-American. I just guessed it was something pretty cool.”
Nearly four months after achieving the honor, Lushkova has a much better idea of how big of a deal being an All-American is.
“I kind of get it because everybody really respects the award so it must be something pretty great,” Lushkova said. “I have to work even harder to get it this year. It's really good for my school. I'm just very happy about that.”
With several players returning from last year's squad, Lushkova has high hopes for this year's Cowgirl tennis team.
“I think the team is working even harder now,” Lushkova said. “We are better with our fitness and on the court. I truly believe that we can host some NCAA matches in Stillwater. I think it would be easier to play these first two rounds so that we can go to the Sweet 16. I think that's actually a goal we can reach this year; not just the Sweet 16, but hopefully better.”
