 Media Credit: Matt Begola Amy Molden has impressed her teammates with hard work at BC .
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Have you seen those new commercials promoting the NCAA? You know the ones. They have a basketball player/psychologist or water polo player/protein chemist explaining that a majority of college athletes will go pro in something other than sports.
Well, whoever makes those commercials should contact Boston College tennis player Amy Molden because the junior is the epitome of the scholar-athlete. She uses her smarts to overmatch an opponent on the court and in the classroom.
As a young girl in San Diego, Molden was not concerned with athletics or academics. She was content to ride her bike around her home tennis court while her parents played the game she would dedicate herself to in high school. It wasn't long, however, before Molden put down the bike and picked up the tennis racket.
"I played almost every sport growing up - soccer, softball, basketball - but didn't really want to play [tennis]," recalled Molden. "I always got dragged to the tennis club so I think I decided that, instead of picking up balls or riding my bike on the court, I'd play [tennis] instead."
Molden began playing competitively at age 10 and the other sports save soccer eventually fell by the wayside by the time she entered University of San Diego High. Soccer and tennis were her two passions until a bone problem in her left knee forced her to choose between them.
Molden's knee surgery required her to be in a cast for three months, not able to put weight on her left leg for the duration. The three months were a difficult stage in Molden's life not only because she couldn't walk for that time, but because she was not able to battle athletically as she had most of her life.
Too eager to return to competition, Molden suffered a stress fracture in her other leg from overcompensation. The time off allowed her to decide which sport to concentrate on in her high school career.
The knee injuries certainly detracted from Molden's time for sports, but her academic career didn't suffer at all. She created a scholastic foundation, was a National Merit Scholar, and a member of her school's chapter of the National Honor Society.
Head coach Nigel Bently is not one to overlook Molden's intelligence on and off the tennis court. "The thing that separates Amy from the pack is that she's incredibly smart. She's the smartest tennis player. Particularly early on in a match, she can develop a feel and understanding for how the match is being played and is able to evaluate her opponents to figure out what is necessary to win. Everything that a 'student-athlete' implies, Amy represents. She's a terrific academic student as well."
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