Indiana University Athletics
Kubas Faces Injury, Pandemic in Freshman Year
4/20/2020 3:18:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Journal Inquirer
On March 13, Lexi Kubas and the Indiana University women's tennis team were preparing to host Big 10 Conference foe University of Iowa when coach Ramiro Azcui called them into a meeting and announced that the conference was going to either postpone or cancel the remainder of the season due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Later that afternoon, the NCAA and the Big 10 brought the Hoosiers' season to a screeching halt, releasing separate statements canceling all competitions through the end of the academic year. Kubas returned to Connecticut.
"It was shocking. Everyone on the team was kind of in denial," said Kubas, a freshman from Ellington. "It was devastating, we worked so hard the whole year for the season and had a lot to prove and we were just getting into Big 10 matches, everyone was devastated. It was heartbreaking, especially for the seniors."
Kubas began playing tennis at seven years old and joined the United States Tennis Association Junior Tour at the 10-and-under level in order to face the top competition in the country. She would later play in the 12-and-under, 14-and-under and 16-and-under divisions.
"It gave me a lot more experience in the game," Kubas said. "Playing in those tournaments, learning how to play at a high level and compete was the most important thing for me."
Kubas went undefeated in dual matches as a freshman playing No. 1 singles for a Kingswood-Oxford prep school team that went undefeated, won the Founders Championships, and won the New England Class B title. She played her sophomore season at KO in West Hartford before transferring to Ellington High for her junior and senior years.
"It was just very time consuming to go (to Kingswood-Oxford)," Kubas said. "I wasn't getting home until around 10 because of tennis and then I had hours of homework to do. I didn't really have any free time. I wanted to grow up and do other things outside of tennis and school. It just got to be too much. It was taking up my whole life."
Kubas didn't play high school tennis as a junior, electing instead to compete on the USTA junior circuit full time. She caught the attention of the Indiana coaching staff with her performance at the Winter National Tournament, one of the premier junior tour events held in Florida in late December.
"I remember walking around and I saw this lefty hitting the crap out of the ball," Azcui said. "I stood there for a few minutes and asked my assistant to come over and watch her. We saw her playing on a clay court, and clay courts are supposed to be slower surfaces. Normally you play with a lot more spin and you try to be more patient. But she was playing like she was playing indoor tennis. She was hitting the ball hard and going for her shots. We play 60 to 70 percent of our matches inside, so for us, finding indoor players is very important. We liked what we saw and we started communicating with her."
Kubas took an unofficial visit to Indiana in March and also visited UConn and Boise State. She returned to Bloomington for her official visit in the fall and verbally committed to the Hoosiers at the beginning of October. She signed with Azcui's program in November 2018.
"I fell in love with Indiana the second I got there," said Kubas, who reached the championship match of the Connecticut State Open tournament as a senior at Ellington. "I loved the school so much. I knew it was where I wanted to go."
Kubas went 5-7 in singles matches and 10-1 in doubles matches for the Hoosiers in the fall. In mid January, on the eve of Indiana's opening match of the spring season, Kubas began experiencing pain in her left shoulder. She was examined by a doctor and diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome and tendinitis.
"They didn't think that I needed surgery, so it was a lot of treatment and therapy exercises," Kubas said. "I took a few days off from practice and then I was able to hit the ball for a small amount of time, which gradually got longer as the season went on."
Kubas, who missed 10 matches, was cleared to resume doubles play in the Hoosiers' home contest against Cincinnati on Feb. 23. She teamed up with Michelle McKamey to earn a 6-1 victory in Indiana's 4-0 victory.
"It was exciting to get back out there," Kubas said. "When I walked onto the court for the first point, I thought, 'This is going to be so fun'. It was great to finally get to play again."
Kubas went 2-3 in her next five doubles matches and was on the cusp of returning to singles when the season was canceled. Now, she'll have a prolonged offseason to nurse her injured shoulder back to full health for the 2020-21 season.
"My arm definitely needed a break," Kubas said. "The doctor wanted me to take weeks off, and that was just not an option being in-season. But now I have a chance to take a little rest."
If she can remain injury free, Azcui expects Kubas to thrive in Bloomington.
"She has a lot of potential. She can become a very highly ranked player in the Big 10 Conference," Azcui said. "She has that kind of potential with the way she hits the ball. I see her really making a major impact if she stays injury free. She's a great kid, has a great personality and work ethic, and I know she really enjoys competing at a high level."
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