With Fox came Ivy titles for M. Tennis

When Justin Fox was younger, his father - an excellent tennis player - took him onto the court and taught him how to play.

The Long Island, N.Y. native has not put down his racquet since, becoming the No. 2 singles player in the country at the ripe age of 16 and winning the National Open at Texas.

But for Fox, it is not just about the competition or the rankings. Tennis has shaped the kind of person he has become.

Among other things, he said, the sport instilled in him a sense of how to deal with adversity. This has come in handy because while he has had many good times playing for Penn, he has also had his share of bad ones.

When Fox first arrived, the team was the laughingstock of the Ivy League, having finished in seventh place the year before. Since then, it's won two Ivy League co-championships.

This season, Fox's goal - along with the rest of the team's - is to take the "co" off the conference crown.

"Every time we step on the court it's a lot of fun," Fox says. "We've had some of the best wins the team has ever had, and also some of the worst losses the team has ever had."

Coach Nik DeVore lauds Fox's "positive-minded" attitude which he has acquired from many hours on the court. Fox posted unspectacular numbers last year, finishing 15-14 in singles after a promising 7-2 start. In doubles, he won 12 of his 29 matches. But it's his mental strength and superior work ethic that, DeVore said, make the junior an "invaluable commodity."

"He's a perfectionist - more so than any on the team," the first year coach said.

Senior Brandon O'Gara agrees, commenting on his "high energy" doubles partner of the last two-and-a-half years: "You can't really ask for much more than that."

O'Gara said that Fox has "good returns [and] good, quick volleys." But Fox - the tallest member of the Quakers at 6-foot-4 - is also pretty versatile between the white lines.

"Justin's game is a transitional game," O'Gara said. "He likes to slice and come in. He likes to serve and volley."

That kind of style makes Fox just as good a singles player as he is a doubles player, DeVore added.

Fox's on-court diligence is mirrored by the seriousness with which he takes his studies.

"My main focus has always been to be Academic All-Ivy," said Fox, a Wharton student. And his teammates say that when's he's not holding serve, he's holding a spot in the library.

Everyone learns life lessons growing up, albeit in different ways. For Fox, it was through a racquet, a 3000-square foot court and a little green ball.

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