Two FishHawk sisters, Hope and Kylie Moulin, that trained in tennis at the Brandon Sports and Aquatic Center (BSAC) are going to be teammates at James Madison University (JMU).
Alex Golub, co-owner of Golub Tennis that works out of BSAC, has been a big influence on the girls as their coach for many years. Golub thinks that the Moulin sisters’ work ethic, along with their talent, makes them successful tennis players.
Hope trains five days a week at BSAC and competes in United States Tennis Association (USTA) tournaments on the weekends. She said that training at BSAC with Coach Golub for 11 years has helped shape her as a tennis player. Kylie said that training at BSAC helped prepare her for the physicality of college athletics.
“They both work hard and are extremely dedicated to the sport,” said Golub. “I have been coaching them a long time, and seeing them grow over that long period of time and watching them have success and advance their tennis careers has been rewarding.”
Kylie, a redshirt junior at JMU, recently transferred to the school after spending her first two seasons at Alabama. The move was the right fit for her after recovering from injuries. The former assistant coach in Alabama that she enjoyed playing for is now the head coach at JMU. She played her freshman season on the Newsome tennis team that made it all the way to the state tournament.
Younger sister Hope is currently a senior at Newsome High School and is verbally committed to JMU. The sisters have trained together for most of their lives, starting tennis at 5 and 7 years old, respectively.
When Hope was 16, she came in second place in the Bobby Curtis Junior State Championship, the biggest tournament in Florida with 64 competitors. She is currently ranked second in the state at 18. Kylie encouraged her sister to join her in college.
“We have trained together my whole life,” said Hope. “I honestly couldn’t imagine going somewhere and her not being there with me—it means a lot to be on the same team as her.”
Hope always knew that she wanted to go to an out-of-state school because she has lived in Florida her whole life and she wanted to experience something different. When she visited JMU, she knew immediately that it would be the right fit.
Her ultimate goal in tennis is to compete in the NCAA Tournament for JMU. James Madison won its conference tournament in 2018, and the team was not able to defend their title this past year due to COVID-19.
Kylie’s first season at JMU was halted in mid-March due to COVID-19. Her goal is to help bring JMU another conference championship if they are able to play. She is excited to become teammates with her sister after watching her grow in the sport for years.
“It was really awesome to watch her fall in love with the sport like I did and really be able to see her grow and improve and be able to reach the level that I was able to reach,” she said.
