Palisadian Gayle Goettman Kirkpatrick was honored during homecoming ceremonies at Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio by being inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Honor on the weekend of October 28-30. “It was a nice honor,” Kirkpatrick said, “and I had a great time.” Kirkpatrick was inducted as the most accomplished women’s tennis player in Wittenberg history. She played No. 1 singles and doubles while serving as team captain in 1982 and 1983 and led her college team to an OAISW Division III Ohio team championship in 1983. She also earned team most valuable player honors two years straight. In 1983, Kirkpatrick compiled a 13-2 singles record and won the state title in both singles and doubles. She finished sixth in the NCAA Division III Tournament in 1983, which was the highest individual national finish in Wittenberg history. “Division III is great because people play because they want to play,” Kirkpatrick said. “Athletes aren’t there because of scholarships.” “It’s a nice reminder that if teenagers want to keep playing in college,” she added, “somewhere there’s a place for them where they can do that.” Kirkpatrick’s accomplishment is even more striking when one realizes that tennis is not a year-round sport in Ohio because of the weather. When she started playing, there weren’t indoor courts. Her brother received a scholarship to Duke for golf. He did not play year round either. After graduating from Wittenberg with a degree in management in 1984, Kirkpatrick won the Clark County Louis Heil Tennis Tournament singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles five years in a row. Kirkpatrick’s father, Bill Goettman, was also a multi-sport athlete at Wittenberg and had earlier been inducted into the Hall of Honor. Kirkpatrick had the unique distinction of becoming the first daughter of an inductee to earn the same recognition. Until age 12, Kirkpatrick was a swimmer. After an illness, she started playing tennis. “It kept me out of trouble,” she laughed. “Sports also gave me a good work ethic. You were never allowed to quit a team, which gives determination.” Kirkpatrick and her husband, Alastair, have two children Olivia, a sixth-grader at Paul Revere and Paul, a fourth-grader at Marquez. Both children participate in sports. Olivia swims and Paul plays basketball, baseball and soccer. “I want my kids to appreciate being healthy,” Kirkpatrick said. “Exercise should be part of your life forever.” Kirkpatrick recently started jumping rope with her son. “Every morning we jump five minutes before we leave for school,” she said. In addition to being on the boards of the Palisades-Malibu YMCA and AYSO, Kirkpatrick sits on the governing board at Marquez Elementary. She was the PTA president at Marquez for two years and served as president of the Friends of Marquez for a year.
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