Matt Scot Lehr is a junior on the tennis team at Greenville University. Lehr was born and raised in Belleville, Illinois, but he now lives in Highland, Illinois. Lehr went to Belleville West High School for his freshman year and he competed in bass fishing, however, he left Belleville West and moved to Triad High School. There, he stopped competing in bass fishing and fell in love with tennis. While he loved bass fishing, he knew he didn’t want to stick with that sport through college.
Lehr wanted to play a physical and mental sport at the collegiate level, so he decided to stick to tennis. During his junior and senior year, his team won conference and sectionals back-to-back. During his senior year, he was awarded all-conference recipient, which opened up doors for him to play at the next level. Winning conference and sectionals two years in a row boosted the team and other players’ recruiting statuses. Lehr made a name for himself and started racking up scholarships and letters in the mail from several schools.
Lehr is an impressive player with a high IQ for the game and his power to hit and curve balls. These skills make it hard for his opponents and teammates to beat him. His long legs also help him cover the ground faster. He is the type of player that will never give up on a play; he keeps going until there is nothing left in the tank. He is one of the top players on the Greenville University Panthers Men Tennis Team, so he has to lead by example. Lehr is a great person to have on the team as well because he keeps his teammates motivated and is a student of the game. Lehr said, “Our team is very supportive and encouraging when someone needs it.” Lehr is looking forward to the conference tournament this year since they didn’t get to have one last year due to COVID-19 outbreak. He said, “We really have a chance to go far this year. We just have to stay healthy and together.”
While searching for schools to attend, Lehr came across Greenville University. Lehr said, “A big part of why I chose Greenville is because it’s a small school close to home. Also, they have a great pre-med program.” He is a biomedical and chemical engineer major and has a minor in Spanish. He explained, “I chose this major so I could go to med school afterward. I chose Spanish to be able to communicate with more people in my field.” He continued on his love for GU by saying, “I love the atmosphere here at Greenville and the people in the community. I’m glad I chose Greenville over other schools because I feel like this was a great decision for me.”
After the season Lehr said, “I will be doing summer research for my biomedical and chemical engineering major here at Greenville, and I’m going to do some off-season training to stay in shape to be ready for my senior year of tennis.”
Media by Isiah Dortch.
