All-First Coast 2022 high school girls tennis player of the year: Violet Robbins, Bolles

Two years ago, with the sports world stuck in neutral, Violet Robbins was wondering when her tennis game would again take flight.

"A lot of our courts [near her home in Connecticut] were padlocked, and there was police tape everywhere," she said. "I couldn't really practice in the usual ways."

So she practiced in a less-than-usual way, learning a new activity and finding out that sometimes, two sports can be better than one.

Meet the team: All-First Coast 2022 high school girls tennis for Northeast Florida

All-First Coast: Boys tennis player of the year: Chase Healey, Christ's Church

Meet the team: All-First Coast 2022 high school boys tennis for Northeast Florida

After trading Connecticut for Florida, and picking up an additional sport along the way, the Bolles sophomore is now a Sunshine State runner-up on the court and the Times-Union's All-First Coast girls tennis player of the year for 2022.

Robbins made her first year of Florida living one to remember, as a state runner-up on the tennis court as well as a regional contender in golf.

Sometimes, Robbins said, the balancing act can be "really tough" — but it's worth it.

"Being able to balance both the teams along with the academics, it's certainly been a busy year, but a good one, too," she said in a remote interview from Connecticut.

A busy year — and almost a championship year.

Robbins finished as runner-up in the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 2A overall singles tennis championship, edged out in a marathon final by Juhnyee See of Coral Springs Charter 6-3, 5-7, 12-10.

Along the way, she cleared a hectic knockout schedule in the FHSAA's complicated ghost draw, becoming Bolles' first state finalist in individual singles since Rachel Viollet won the Class 2A championship in 1987. She also won the Region 2-2A titles in both singles and doubles, teaming up with fellow Bulldog Alida Cucoranu in the latter.

"She has a strong game, and she knows how to win," Bolles girls tennis coach Chin Bee Khoo said.

But tennis is only one part of Robbins' game.

Robbins also helped Bolles to the Region 1-1A championship in girls golf in the fall. She shot a 76 in the regional finals at St. Johns Golf and Country Club, good for fifth among individuals, and earned a berth on the annual All-First Coast girls team.

Her experience levels in the two sports vary dramatically. Robbins said she fell in love with tennis upon her first introduction to the game around age 4, and she started competing in age group events at 7, growing into a highly-rated player in the New England junior tennis scene.

She's also proven her fighting spirit. In the first round of the FHSAA Class 2A tournament, she saved quintuple match point and ended up defeating Pine Crest's Michaela Landry on the road to the state final.

"Just finding that last push to win seven points in a row and win 11-9, that's what keeps you going," she said.

By contrast, golf wasn't a sport she even played until 2020, when COVID-19 restrictions had closed many recreational venues in New England but left golf courses open.

Robbins said she and her brother began practicing golf with a net in their backyard in Connecticut, and before long, she had added a second sport to her list.

"To me, they're really similar," she said. "It's like the same swing, but on different planes."

Even as Connecticut's coronavirus restrictions showed signs of relaxing, though, Robbins faced a decision for the 2021-22 school year. Unlike Florida, staying in New England would have meant choosing one sport or the other during the high school season. Under Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference regulations, both girls golf and girls tennis compete in the spring.

So rather than choose between her favorite sports, she made the move to Bolles, where she said she quickly adjusted to her new surroundings with the support of her teammates and coaches.

Khoo said Robbins' competitive spirit and polished technique helped her make an instant impact.

"Every time she stepped on the court, she delivered," she said.

Slotting in at No. 1 singles on a Bolles squad loaded with top-to-bottom talent, Robbins helped the Bulldogs to a perfect regular season, finishing unbeaten in both the top singles and the top doubles lines entering the postseason.

Among her favorite parts of her new life at Bolles, she said, is the chance to join with her teammates to compete together rather than just playing as an individual. Her efforts helped Bolles capture this spring's district and regional championships.

"It was just a different atmosphere for me altogether," she said, "because of the whole feeling of being part of the team, which I'd never experienced before."

In the long run, Robbins said, she's hoping for the chance to compete at NCAA Division I level in one of her sports.

Which one? She's not sure yet. And at this stage in her career, she's not planning to rush the decision.

"I really look forward to my high school seasons to come," she said. "I've still got two more years left, and I really want to cherish them."

Violet Robbins, girls tennis

Sophomore, Bolles

Age: 17

Resume: Led Bolles to Region 2-2A girls tennis championship. ... Finished as Florida High School Athletic Association Class 2A state runner-up in individual singles. ... Also received Greater Jacksonville High School Sports Awards recognition in golf, placing fifth in regionals. ... Still evaluating college options.

Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: High school girls tennis: Bolles' Violet Robbins wins All-First Coast