Saunders believes, all the way to the top

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/05/2018 (2164 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

They actually laughed at Jennifer Saunders when she boldly predicted back in the early 1990s that she would smash her way onto the national racquetball scene.

She’s now grateful to the doubters, who, she noted playfully, will be spared from being exposed to public scorn.

“I wasn’t good as a junior, and even when I was 18 and said I wanted to be on the national team, there was a lot of disbelief from people that I knew, who will remain nameless,” Saunders said earlier this week. “I can tell you that my motivation has definitely been to prove people wrong.”

Consider it mission accomplished… and then accomplished again, and again and again. 

The Winnipegger, who partnered with Frédérique Lambert of Montreal to capture a Canadian women’s doubles championship on Wednesday, is closing in on an astounding 10th career Canadian singles title. 

Saunders is set to play in the women’s final Saturday afternoon against fellow Winnipegger Christine Richardson. Saunders qualified for the final by defeating Michèle Morissette of Baie-Comeau, Que., in straight games (15-6, 15-3) in the semifinals Thursday.

The nationals are being held at the University of Winnipeg’s Duckworth Centre for the first time.

A 10th national title for Saunders would equal the number won by fellow Winnipegger and Canadian racquetball legend Sherman Greenfeld.

Even if Saunders falls short, she’s already earned iconic status.

Saunders, 41, remains one of the finest racquetball players this country has produced. She’s travelled extensively, representing Canada at amateur and professional events across North America, as well as in nearly a dozen Central and South American countries.

The doubles crown ups her combined total to 21 national titles, tied for most by a Canadian player, male or female. She can move ahead of Mike Green of Burlington, Ont., with a win Saturday.

Saunders also lost a pair of International Racquetball Federation world finals (2002 and ’12) but cherishes those silver medals. She’s competed at three Pan Am Games — earning a bronze in ’15 in Toronto in the team event — and is prepared to add to her international collection at this summer’s IRF worlds at a yet-to-be-named location.

Not bad for a kid from Thompson who no one thought could make it.

“I’ve played with a chip on my shoulder, so to speak. I certainly put a lot of time in to catching up to other players right after junior. I rarely took time off. I played all summer, but I loved every second of it,” said Saunders, who considers the now-retired Greenfeld, a two-time world champion, one of her mentors. “But I was also determined to do it my way. As much as I looked up to Sherman, I learned early we were different people and I needed to do it my own way.

“Living life, having fun but holding myself to a high athletic standard. I didn’t just focus solely on being an athlete, I got my degree and I have a career.”

Saunders, the youngest of three girls, was into a pile of sports growing up in northern Manitoba, although hockey was her greatest love. She played boys hockey until she was about 13, while cheering on Wayne Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers from afar.

The community racquetball courts were housed under the same roof as the local hockey arena. Saunders recalls taking a learn-to-play-racquetball clinic when she was about 10.

“I was the kid that tried any sport. In retrospect, I think I enjoyed it because it was an individual sport. Before, that, everything in our small town was team sports and I always played with boys,” she said. “I think an individual sport allowed me to do things on my own terms.”

Saunders moved south after high school, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in physical activity and sport studies from the U of W in 1999. Deeply involved as a player, she was hired by Racquetball Manitoba as a program director that year, and was appointed executive director in 2002.

What a remarkable year that was for her, although the good vibes started coming a year before.

“In 2001, I made the (singles) final of the nationals even though I was the sixth seed. I beat the No. 3 seed and the No. 2 seed, and then eventually lost to the No 1 seed (Josée Grand’Maître) in the final. And that’s when I thought to myself, ‘I’m going to win the next nationals,’” Saunders recalled.

“I wasn’t even supposed to be in the final but I felt like I could have won it. I was definitely feeling like I needed to keep at this.”

Twelve months later in Montreal, she got the job done — some payback on Grand’Maître.

“I remember being the most nervous in the quarter-finals because it was against a player (Julie Neubauer of Calgary) I usually had so much trouble with. I remember winning the quarter-final and thinking, ‘I got this now. I can really win this. Now, it’s just about having fun,’” Saunders said.

“(In the final), the first game, I was down 13-10 and my coach said, ‘Just hit this serve five times in a row,’ and I did. I scored five points in a row and that was it because the next game wasn’t close.”

A few months later, she lost to American veteran Cheryl Gudinas in the world women’s final in Puerto Rico.

Saunders was hit by the harsh reality of sport in 2003 and ’04, dropping back-to-back Canadian championships to Lori-Jane Powell of Prince Albert, Sask. But she reclaimed the crown in 2005.

A bitterly disappointing three-year drought (2006-08) became a distant memory when she administered a stranglehold on the title for six straight years (2009-14). Steering clear of a major injury at any point during her playing career was crucial to her success, she said.

Saunders captured her most recent title in 2016 in Burlington.

“It never gets old because every time there’s a different obstacle or a different reason why it’s special,” she said. “I remember (during the streak), that was a time when I was playing the pro tour full time, so I was very confident and very match-ready. It didn’t come easy, but I was in a place where I was playing some pretty good racquetball.

“For me, because of Sherman Greenfeld’s legacy out of Winnipeg, the nationals were always very important to me. It was the week of the year that I enjoyed the most and the title I wanted to win the most — outside of a world championship, of course.”

In 2012, she advanced to her second world final, but settled for second place again. “To have a 10-year span and to be in another world final was really a highlight. I worked very that year to get there (Dominican Republic).”

There’s less time now to spend honing her skills. Being the lead person for the sport in Manitoba fills her schedule, although she still finds time to play golf — she has two career holes-in-one, both on the eighth hole at the Canoe Club — and slo-pitch with Nasty Spankin’ Ballet, a mixed team named by Saunders’ friend, Susan Livingston, who passed away from breast cancer in 2015.

Saunders hosts a charity racquetball tournament, Peace, Love & Racquetball — in honour of her friend — every January at the Duckworth.

Racquetball has taken her to Guatamala, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Chile, Honduras, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and Colombia. But prevailing at home, she said, would be especially sweet, particularly with friends and family here to watch it happen.

“Should it happen, it will mean everything to me to win it in Winnipeg,” Saunders said. “Right now, I just enjoy the moment. There’s a different confidence level now.

“Back then, winning was all I could think about, all I wanted. Now, it’s enjoying the challenge of trying to do it again. It’s not life-altering, all-encompassing, it’s just seeing what I can still accomplish.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @WFPJasonBell