USC to honor Elkins at memorial service
Before the women’s tennis match at Auburn, South Carolina interim coach Katarina Petrovic sat down with her team and relayed longtime women’s tennis coach Arlo Elkins’ last words to her, as he had died just the night before.
For Petrovic, the match was an emotional one, as she had not only worked alongside Elkins as his assistant, but was also a former player of his. Even when he was her coach, she considered him as more, as he was always her mentor.
The Gamecocks pulled out a 4-3 win that was emotional for them in more ways than one, as it was the first step in honoring their beloved coach and pressing forward with the season.
“I wasn’t a coach that day,” Petrovic said of the match. “I was probably one of his daughters on the court, and it was hard to coach. I apologized to the girls. They knew how I felt, so they took care of business.”
Senior Dijana Stojic said the team tried to push the news of Elkins’ death out of their heads and focus on the match, but it was tough, as Petrovic passed along his last words. He had given the team advice on how to defeat Auburn, but it was also customary that everyone would meet with him after a match.
For Stojic, today will be the most challenging step forward, as the Gamecocks will attend his memorial service in the Zone at Williams-Brice Stadium. Many of his former players have traveled from across the globe to honor his memory.
“We still didn’t talk about Arlo because we had two matches and we tried to push that away,” Stojic said. “It was hard when we found out because he was my coach for four years and everything was just too early.”
Stojic said playing through the rest of the season will be challenging because it will be “weird” without Elkins. Stojic doesn’t know what to expect, but the Gamecocks will host two SEC matches this weekend.
Though Elkins’ death has been trying for the team, Petrovic said it will not be motivation. According to Petrovic, the Gamecocks are motivated out of their responsibility to the university. The dedication and commitment to South Carolina was something Petrovic picked up from Elkins, as she now tries to pass the lesson to the team in adversity. Petrovic became the interim coach in February, when Elkins stepped away from the day-to-day coaching for health related reasons.
“I will never forget the day he called me to become his assistant,” Petrovic said. “He said, ‘Kat, do you want to think it over?’ I said, ‘No, I want it.’ ‘But are you sure? Call me back tomorrow.’ I said, ‘No, that was my dream — to work with you.’”
While Petrovic was playing for Elkins, the two used to talk a lot on the phone about possible doubles lineups. Elkins would tease her about how she was a freshman at 21, calling her “Grandma.” She will continue to say some of Elkins’ favorite phrases. Before the team would take a water break, Elkins would call out, “One more minute!”
Just as Elkins respected Petrovic’s insight when she was a freshman, Petrovic said Elkins made her laugh all of the time with how much he respected her, as he would always tell her husband that they share the same boss.
Though moving forward will be difficult for everyone, and Elkins’ memory is still very much alive for all of his players, friends and family, the Gamecocks know he would want them to “take care of business.”
“In a situation like this, it always brings the team together,” Stojic said. “I think we’re stronger and closer. It will be hard to finish the season without Arlo, but we’ll give our best and try to do that for him.”