Ekaterina Potapova reflects on her senior year at Alcorn
When Alcorn State University senior Ekaterina Potapova receives her bachelor’s degree in accounting at Saturday’s Commencement Exercises, she will depart the University as a champion in the classroom and on the tennis court.
The Ukraine native, who came to Alcorn in 2012 on a full athletic scholarship, was part of the Women’s Tennis team who won the 2016 Women’s Tennis Tournament title in April. With their monumental win over Jackson State University, the Lady Braves tennis team earned their fourth Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship and first since 2008.
Ekaterina has fond memories of going to battle with her teammates that she will always cherish.
“My experience at Alcorn has been fun and great,” said Ekaterina. “It’s been an unforgettable journey. Even though there have been ups and downs, our hard work paid off in the end. I feel like we got what we deserved.”
Despite having success on the tennis court, Ekaterina never forgot her main objective for attending school, which was performing well in class. She was one of 148 President’s Scholars to be celebrated at the 73rd Biannual Honors Convocation in March. As she reflects on juggling sports and academics, Ekaterina remembers the sacrifices she had to make.
“It is tough achieving outstanding results on the court while maintaining a high grade point average. I had to work really hard and use my time wisely. I even had to sacrifice going to sleep sometimes.”
Ekaterina said that she will always remember the people she encountered while attending Alcorn.
“I will miss my friends, professors and of course, my tennis teammates.”
