Watching junior April Burrage and her teammates compete, it is hard to believe Burrage is the one player on the North Carolina A&T tennis team who went three years without playing competitively. She and Kenya Colbert have a team-leading five doubles wins, and Burrage has the third-highest win total in singles competition with three.
But it is true. The summer before her senior year at Walter Payton College Preparatory, Burrage tore the labrum cartilage in her left shoulder after overuse from tennis and weightlifting did damage. Despite the severity of the injury, it was not going to keep her away from a game her parents introduced to her when she was 8 years old.
Her eagerness, though, may have been detrimental.
“I was not informed that it would take a few years for my injury to be healed. The first time I went to physical therapy, I was so determined to get back into tennis that I did not allow enough recovery time, which worsened the injury,” Burrage said. “I was so determined to play tennis again.”
Burrage learned patience throughout her ordeal even though the lessons were difficult. The rehabilitation of her left shoulder lingered on for two years. What kept Burrage motivated were her intentions from the outset. She was going to play again – period.
“I love the game of tennis, and not being able to play my senior year of high school was not fun,” she said.
After successfully completing rehab and strength and conditioning regiments, Burrage knew she was ready to play collegiate tennis. Last spring, she approached head women’s tennis coach James Dunwoody to see how she could try out for a spot on the team.
“I got his contact information and called him. He told me to try out with the team in August of this school year,” Burrage said.
Burrage and tennis player Victorea Austin have a mutual friend who set up a meeting between the two. The meeting resulted in Austin helping Burrage prepare for August by playing against her in friendly competition. When Burrage came out for the team in August, Dunwoody was impressed.
He thought she had a great serve and a nice forehand. Burrage’s backhand needed work, but overall the first impression was a success. Burrage was not only back on the tennis court, she had an opportunity to play Division I tennis. No small detail like a backhand was going to stop her.
For the remainder of the summer, Burrage continued her conditioning regiment, as she prepared to try out for the 2012 team. She spent her time doing a good amount of running, and of course, hitting the tennis ball. She also worked on getting ready for the time demands of being a student-athlete by balancing her practice time with her job, and spending the 2011 summer working as the risk management services intern at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.
She also made a mark in North Carolina A&T academics before channeling her work ethic and dedication with the A&T women’s tennis program this spring.
“I value my grades a lot. I think it’s very important. I’m in college to learn, so I try to learn to the best of my ability, so I work very hard. I don’t want to slack off in my academics or anything,” she said. “That’s what I’m here for – number one is to be a student first and an athlete second.”
Burrage, who has been victorious a combined nine times this season, is one of a handful of Aggie student-athletes with a 4.0 cumulative grade point average. Dunwoody said that her intelligence in the classroom is only matched by her intelligence on the court.
“She’s not only smart but she plays smart. She knows exactly what she needs to do to win. She’s a very confident young lady,” Dunwoody said. While his whole team has performed extremely well in the classroom, Dunwoody is one of six coaches who can boast that he has a 4.0 student on his team.
“April is all business. She has no time for idle talk,” he continued. “She’s the most mature student-athlete on the team. I expect good things from her in the future. April is a great role model and we appreciate her efforts. It’s a great opportunity to work with her. She’s quiet and a listener – that’s probably why she’s so productive in the classroom. A&T is very fortunate to have a student-athlete like her.”
But Burrage doesn’t just dedicate her time to the team and to her studies. She is also an Elizabeth and Lewis Dowdy Scholar, a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, a student senator for the School of Business and Economics, and a Management Leadership for Tomorrow career prep fellow.
“I like how I have the experience of being a student and not an athlete. It was fun while it lasted. Once I made the commitment to play sports, I had to change how much energy I put into the organizations. So now I’m just a member of the organizations I worked with last year,” she said.
Burrage and the Aggies are closing in on the end of the 2012 season. The Aggies did not make the MEAC Tournament in Raleigh, N.C., this season, but the experience for Burrage has been an exciting one after finally being able to return to the sport she loves.
“I’ve been having a lot of fun since I’ve been back in tennis. It’s made my college experience a lot better. Now, I can say that I’m a college athlete. It felt good to come back after taking years off, and being able to make the team,” Burrage said. “And not only to make the team but to also be one of the starting players, so it’s been a lot of fun.”
