April 17, 2001
| K.J. Hippensteel |
 |
| Sport: Men's Tennis |
NICKNAME:
Rook, NASA, hippster, Fire
FAVORITE FOOD:
Chinese, Krispy Kreme
FAVORITE MUSIC ARTIST(s):
2Pac, Snoop Dogg, Outkast
FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM:
Minnesota Vikings and T-wolves
FAVORITE PLACE TO HANG OUT:
Scotty's (teamate Scotty Scott) house on the water in Tiburon, best view ever!!
BEST BOOK YOU HAVE READ:
"How to Win friends and Influence People"
FAVORITE CLASS:
Sports Medicine and Exercise Physiology
FAVORITE HOBBY:
Playing other sports, PlayStation2, chillin' with friends, jetskiing around Alcatraz at Scotty's
FAVORITE VIDEO GAME:
Madden 2001 & SSX for Playstation2
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
Sportscenter
FAVORITE ATHLETE:
The 2 MJ's: Michael Jordan and Michael Johnson
FAVORITE NON-TENNIS ACTIVITY:
Basketball, football, golf, pretty much any sport
ONE WORD THAT DESCRIBES YOU:
Gutsy
OPPONENT YOU WOULD MOST LIKE TO BEAT:
Georgia at their place in the finals of NCAAs
HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A MATCH:
Light hit beforehand and then I like to relax and be alone by listening to one of my mixes.
IF YOU COULD PLAY ANOTHER SPORT AT STANFORD, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
Football, so I could throw to my bro, Evan Combs
BEST THING ABOUT BEING A STUDENT-ATHLETE AT STANFORD:
Road-trips (lots of memories)
BEST PART ABOUT YOUR GAME:
Attacking aggressive style, always putting pressure on opponents and not letting them defeat me.
SOMEWHERE YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN THAT YOU WOULD MOST LIKE TO VISIT:
Mars
IF YOU COULD HAVE DINNER WITH A FAMOUS PERSON, WHO WOULD IT BE?
Jesus Christ or Neil Armstrong.
WHAT HAS BEEN THE HIGHLIGHT OF YOUR ATHLETIC CAREER TO THIS POINT?:
Winning the US Open Junior Doubles with David Martin and winning the NCAA Team Championships last year.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO IN YOUR SPARE TIME:
Play other sports, listen to music, watch movies, hang with friends.
MOST INFLUENTAL PERSON IN YOUR LIFE:
My parents: my dad taught me to be calm in pressure situations and my mom gave me the competitive desire to always strive to be the best.
WHAT MADE YOU CHOOSE TO ATTEND STANFORD:
Great tennis program with two legendary coaches and top-rate school where I was going to be challenged both on and off the court.
WHAT IS SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF THAT FEW PEOPLE KNOW:
That I want to be an astronaut and be the first human to walk on Mars.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUNG TENNIS PLAYERS WHO WANT TO COMPETE IN COLLEGE:
If you really desire it and work hard at it, you can make it. I didn't have the most talent, but I had a huge desire to excel on the court and I worked hard to achieve that.
FAVORITE BREAKFAST CEREAL:
Lucky Charms.
EARLIEST TENNIS MEMORY :
Playing in clinics as a youngster and being so short and young that I ended up getting hit by other kids racquets way too many times as I was running back to the end of the line :o) (caused many headaches)
FAVORITE PRE-TOURNAMENT MEAL:
Turkey and ham sandwich and Gatorade
FAVORITE PLACE TO PLAY TENNIS AND WHY:
Wimbledon, because of the tradition and because its grass and that lets me go all out diving for balls which I like to do, but on hard courts here it often gets me hurt.