Just a few months ago, East Webster’s Cooper Reed had his mind set that he was going to join the Air Force National Guard and go to college at Mississippi State.
But those plans changed pretty quickly for Reed.
Hewas playing doubles for the East Webster tennis team when he met with the tennis coach at Holmes Community College.
It didn’t take long before Reed had an offer and signed to play tennis for the Bulldogs.
“”I was playing at French Camp in the playoffs and the Holmes coach was there,” Reed said. “Samuel Turner’s father told me the Holmes coach was looking at me. I went and talked with him and told him I was interested in playing and signed last week.”
Reed was a late starter in tennis and didn’t start playing until the summer before his sophomore year at Caledonia. After his sophomore year, his family moved to East Webster where he has played for coach Robbie Brown the last two years.
“Cooper has many attributes that you want in an athlete and in tennis,” Brown said. “He is a hard worker and is very coachable. He has shown a lot of growth in the last two years and that goes back to him being coachable and willing to work. I’ve had many players that were good and would’t be coachable but he’s not like that. He’s willing to work, he cheers for his teammates and does the right things. He is really a joy to be around. We don’t have a team captain but if we did, he’s certainly captain material.”
Reed was also the president of the senior class at East Webster. Reed said he plans to major in nursing at Holmes.
“The coach told me that I will play some singles and doubles and maybe even mixed,” Reed said. “He said he really would be able to say until we get on campus and start practicing. He thinks he can do something with me and thinks I can get better. I’ve never really taken any lessons so he thinks I have a lot of room to grow. I’m excited about it. It will be a journey.”
