This evening, I sat down with dual-athlete Max Schenkein ’08. A potent force on the golf and tennis teams, Max might not exactly be six feet tall, but he goes big when it counts – on the tennis courts and golf courses of course. Max shares his insights on the two teams with us.
VC: So you’re a dual athlete. Tennis and golf are two tough sports. Tell me how you balance your tough schedule.
MS: I basically try to suck as much as possible at both. I really don’t practice that much for either of them. But in all seriousness, I’ve played both for a long time and at this point, as long as I practice once in a while, I can balance them as far as the schedules go. I’ve been able to play both without distracting my ability from both.
VC: I heard you like to stroke tennis balls with your roommate, Pauri Pandian ’08 (who is on the tennis team).
MS: I do enjoy stroking it with my roommate. We enjoy stroking balls with each other. It creates a good feeling. It gets us in a good rhythm. It lets us get right back out there again.
VC: So tell me about your roommate. I heard he is one badass.
MS: Oh man, my roommate, that’s just a bag of tricks right there. I’ve known Pauri since high school and we battled [on the tennis court] in high school. If you would have asked me three years ago if I would have been his roommate in college, I would have said, “fuck you, have a nice day,” but it worked out well.
VC: So tennis and golf are two interesting sports. What guy on the tennis team has the potential to beat you on the golf course? Rumor has it some guys have challenged you to a match.
MS: Our tri-captain, Jack Rooney [’07], has the potential to beat me on the golf course. When he takes his shirt off it intimidates me a lot out there. It would cause my knees to buckle and cause me to miss a putt, looking at his crispy abs. Also Tallen Todorovich ’07 might have a chance. His blindingly dark skin makes me lose sight of the golf ball. He’s more of a gangster type golfer, so if I beat him he’ll promptly beat me, or kill me. Either one.
VC: Is there any dude on the golf team who could give you a run for your money on the tennis court?
MS: Definitely not Eli Wilson. He’s kind of a head case. I know Dave Velard ’08 hits a golf ball short off the tee, so he wouldn’t have a chance at hitting a hard tennis ball. Other than that, I think I’m the only golfer who has any athletic ability, as evident by my smooth tennis game.
VC: There are not any females on the golf team, but perhaps there might be in the future. Tell me your thoughts on females playing in the men’s game.
MS: That’s an interesting question right there. There are lots of rumors, like Anika Sorestem might be a man. Just kidding. But I think Michelle Wei is very attractive for a 16-year-old golfer. I would enjoy playing some golf with her. In fact, I think most of the female golfers are a little too young for me actually. I enjoy women playing golf. I’ll just put it that way.
VC: Speaking of females, tell me the ladies on the tennis team who emulate your style on and off the court
MS: I would have to say it’s a combination of Tori Santuro ’07, Alex Sirois ’09, and Emily Fish ’09. I’ll tell you why. Tory is like me off the court – she’s kind of got her head together even though she’s kind of crazy inside, and she’s a government major. Alex is just freaking insane on and off the court, a lot of people think I am too. Emily just kind of goes under the radar, kind of cool out there. That’s a good combination.
VC: Now who do you think will do better this season, the golf team or men’s tennis team.
MS: I’d say they’re both going to do pretty well. I’ll tell you why. I expect myself to be the first athlete to win two championships in one season. When I’m an all-American tennis and golf player, I will go down in the NCAA Hall of Fame as an all-country club athlete.
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