THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 20, 1994 TAG: 9410180149
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DENISE MICHAUX, COMPASS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 98 lines
THERE HE STOOD, waiting.
A row of empty tennis courts behind him and one player at his side.
It was the fall of 1989 and it was supposed to be the first day of practice at Booker T. Washington and the first day of Paul Palombo's tennis coaching career.
Palombo had met most of the members of the girls tennis team the previous spring and he tried to stay in touch with them through the summer, so what happened on that first day of practice came as a total shock.
``I was furious,'' Palombo said.
On day two he tried a different approach.
``I got in my car and drove to every one of their houses and picked them up,'' Palombo said. ``I know they thought `Hey, this guy is not all there.'''
On day three he laid down the law.
``If you aren't here to work hard or don't want to be here, then you can leave,'' Palombo said, and that sent a couple of people packing.
But most of them remained.
``I saw a lack of dedication,'' Palombo said. ``They came to practice wearing crazy outfits and showed up late.
``I thought there were a lot of good athletes walking around, but we've still never had a girl on the team who is just a tennis player. I've always had to convert them.''
Recruiting just got a lot easier.
``Like so many other things out there, the more successful you are, the easier it gets,'' Palombo said. ``People like to follow success.''
Even Palombo never imagined the success that his Bookers found this year.
Booker T. snapped Maury's string of 100 district victories with a 5-4 win during the regular season. A couple of weeks later the Bookers broke the Commodores 13-year stranglehold on the Eastern District title.
``This year has been a total surprise,'' Palombo said. ``I thought if we work hard maybe we'd get to third.
``When you are the underdog that helps. There is no pressure and I just ask them for the best possible tennis they can give me.
``They just refused to lose.''
And Palombo hasn't been able to contain his excitement this fall. He calls everyone he knows after a big match to report the results and infect all of his friends with his enthusiasm.
So it isn't hard to imagine him walking the halls every day six years ago to try to sell someone new on the game of tennis.
Palombo doesn't take no for an answer and he can combat any excuse with a solution.
If they said they didn't have a racket or couldn't afford one, Palombo would find a way to put a racket in their hands and more importantly keep it there.
Once the selling was done, he also had to teach them the game.
No problem for a gung-ho competitive tennis player like Palombo.
Competitive, yes, but Palombo has never played a day on a tennis team.
Palombo, a magna cum laude graduate at Old Dominion, has played recreational tennis since he was a kid, but playing rec tennis and teaching a bunch of high school kids how to compete is a totally different ball game.
``I wondered at times just what did I get myself in to,'' Palombo, 30, said. ``I like to play tennis and I pride myself on being an all-around athlete. I saw it as a great challenge.
``I watched a lot of videos and went to a lot of girls tennis matches.
``To me the big thing is you are going to be successful if you are disciplined and dedicated.''
Discipline isn't an area Palombo has had a hard time with.
``I am tough on them,'' Palombo said. ``I'll scream at them, but then we go forward and work it out. I also praise them a lot. I try to appeal to their personal sense of pride.
``I want them to be hungry to win. They've got to want to taste it.''
Palombo has effectively rebuilt Booker T's girls' soccer and tennis programs. The girls' soccer team has risen from similarly humble origins to become a fixture in the Eastern Region tournament.
So what's next?
``My goal is to be the dean of students or assistant principal,'' Palombo said. ``I think I could do more good and not just help a select group of athletes.
``I will always stress sports. I think sports are an important part of education, but they have got to get a high grade point average too.''
Palombo has very definite ideas about what he would do differently if he should reach his goal.
``I'd like to dedicate myself to being there for them after school,'' he said. ``I would like to be very visible and get out there in the community and meet their parents and really know what their needs are.''
Meeting needs.
That's what Palombo has done in soccer and tennis. ILLUSTRATION: Photos
Coach Paul Palombo's Bookers broke the Commodores 13-year
stranglehold on the Eastern District title.
Staff photos by JOSEPH JOHN KOTLOWSKI
Palombo never played a day on a high school tennis team.
by CNB