Although new to her role, Girls Tennis Head Coach Katy Lambson is no stranger to the sport. After coaching Girls Junior Varsity Tennis last spring, she stepped into the head coach position following longtime coach Deborah Chase’s departure. She began playing tennis at eight years old, competed through school, and continued at the collegiate level.
Lambson was drawn to boarding school due to the opportunity to affect students’ lives through teaching and coaching. Her own positive high school tennis experience helped shape how she coaches the team.
“I was super excited about the coaching aspect [at boarding school] because being on a sports team was a huge part of my life, especially in high school. I still talk to my high school tennis coach. He was such a mentor to me; the memories and friendships I made on the team were huge parts of my high school experience. I’ve thought a lot about what he did to make practice fun, and it wasn’t all intensity; there was plenty of that. We had to improve, we wanted to do drills, we wanted to get better, we wanted to be super competitive, and we wanted to win. However, more than that, he authentically cared about how we were doing as individuals and not just as tennis players. That was something that I appreciated, and it was something that I committed to do when I stepped into a coaching role,” said Lambson.
Evelyn Kung ’26 praised Lambson’s organizational skills and her understanding attitude. In what has been a tough week for the Andover community, Lambson has communicated and supported her players.
“One notable thing about Coach Lambson is that she’s really organized and on top of things. She’s always on top of our uniforms, what we eat, and when our matches will happen. We’ve been doing a lot of challenge matches lately, and she’s created a whole tournament bracket, which has been cool. Another thing about her is that with all the recent events, she’s been very in touch with how everyone on campus is feeling and how we’re feeling, and she’s very understanding about it. She cares about us, not just as tennis players, but as people too. She’s very understanding of what we need,” said Kung.
Nitya Madduri ’28, the only Junior on the team, spoke about how Lambson has worked to include her. Madduri believes that Lambson’s cooperation with her team captains and the team’s core values create an inclusive environment.
Madduri said, “She’s always making sure that I feel included, especially with the help of our two captains [Lena Ciganer-Albeniz ’25 and Amy Oku ’25,] who, along with everyone else, are super supportive. Having a positive team environment is really important to Coach Lambson, as she always wants us to have good connections with one another. Another core value is being super resilient. She’s told us that setbacks are a given, so it’s how you respond that matters.”
Lambson outlined some of her core values, specifically creating a positive and supportive team culture during. Furthermore, she acknowledged the importance of integrity and sportsmanship.
“A sense of team and togetherness and support and supporting one another. Support. It’s absolutely a core value. One of the things all of the [girls] emphasized, one of the things that I emphasized, is that when we’re playing a match, like our first match this Wednesday, that’s a time for us to set aside homework, to set aside our phones, and be there in the moment. Another thing that I always emphasize is stellar sportsmanship. Tennis is a little bit difficult. It’s unlike other sports because we don’t have officials. So, when we’re playing other teams, you make your own line calls, and there are sometimes disputes, which can get frustrating. One thing that I emphasize for all of them is that regardless of how an opponent or another team is playing, no matter what, I expect you to be an ambassador to the school and represent PA well,” said Lambson.
Kung noted how seriously Lambson takes coaching and how she encourages her players to prioritize the team. Lambson has also laid the framework for long-lasting traditions to help build a strong community.
“Coach Lambson has made it pretty clear that she wants tennis to be one of our first priority after academics. Academics come first, but tennis comes after. She’s really dedicated to the team. She cares about all of us individually and really wants us to do well this year. She’s also really fun, and she wants to establish team traditions. She was talking about how one of her old teams would go out to get ice cream after beating one of its tougher opponents, so we’re probably going to do that,” said Kung.
