Loyola bound... Butler’s dedication earns her a full-ride tennis scholarship
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Story by Alexander Landowski
hen the coach in any sport claims that they are in awe of their ability to compete, you have a pretty special athlete. Such is the case with Lamar’s star tennis player, Natalie Butler, and her coach Jeremy Davison. After four years of hard work and competitive zeal, Butler has been awarded a scholarship to play tennis at Loyola University in New Orleans. Having really only begun playing tennis in the eighth grade, her rise to the level of team captain is somewhat of a meteoric climb - especially when you consider that entering high school, her primary focus was academics. It was just this year that she really decided that she wanted to play tennis in college. Picking Butler as team captain was an obvious choice for Coach Davison. “She is a fantastic teammate and an exemplary student and athlete,” he exclaimed. The captain’s role was an enjoyable one for her but it also carried a significant amount of responsibility for her as the only senior on the team. “There was difficulty at the beginning of the year on the guy’s side and I kind of helped,” she said. “My little brother’s on the team, so I wanted to help make the team better
for them; so, we worked it out.” She’s hopeful that she’s leaving the team with the understanding that it doesn’t matter what your lineup is. Davison has guided Butler for the past three seasons and has found her very coachable and highly competitive. According to him, she responds very well to criticism, although her manner in doing so is a bit unusual. “When you give her corrective criticism, she kind of laughs,” he said, “and takes everything with a grain of salt --- but, she is very methodical and precise when it comes to making corrections and taking advice.” Coach Davison is well-aware of the pedigree of tennis players in Butler’s family, which becomes even more obvious to him when he watches her on the court. Being a competitor himself, he greatly admires the way she approaches the most difficult matches. “I’m in awe of how she responds in different situations,” he exclaimed. “To watch her be able to battle and the way that she has responded in match play is remarkable!” For Butler, her senior year has been even more special because her brother John is on the boy’s tennis team, although it didn’t start out that way. “It was interesting playing my little brother,” she said. “We didn’t get along at first, but it all worked out.” The siblings became mixed doubles partners and were victorious all the way to regionals this spring. Following a successful high school career, Butler is excited about the challenges and opportunities at the next level. To the coach who has seen multiple athletes come into the program with the focus and determination that it takes to be offered a college scholarship, Davison is not all that surprised by the success of Butler. Simply stated, “She is something special.”
“It was interesting playing my little brother. We didn’t get along at first, but it all worked out.” Natalie Butler
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