However, her injury didn’t slow her down. Gudinas contends that her training is the reason that she is sitting in the No. 1 position. She has a rigorous workout program that often leaves her exhausted.

"My workouts are so sport specific. When I get done working I don’t even have enough energy to get in the shower," she says. "I have to sit in the floor of the locker room or lie down and recover because I have worked so hard, and that’s what I think you have to do."

Nerves also play a part in Gudinas’ success. She needs the perfect balance of anxiety to perform her best. Gudinas does not have a coach, but she does have a group of friends who support her and keep her mentally ready to play.

"If I’m a nervous wreck before a tournament then my friends will say something that calms me down, but if I’m not nervous they make me a little nervous. My friends know that if I’m not nervous that’s a bad sign. I need to be nervous, so these guys all know how to get me to that state," she remarks.

Gudinas is very strict about the rituals that she follows before a match. As soon as she gets into the town where she will be competing she makes a trip to the grocery store to buy four 32-ounce Gatorades, one for each match she could possibly play. Gudinas also says that she finds a restaurant that she likes and eats the same thing there almost every day that she is in town.

"I know that if I don’t do what I need to do, if I don’t do all of the rituals and the preparation and the workouts beforehand, then I know that people can beat me."

Gudinas tries to surround herself with positive people to help keep her confidence and optimism up. She gives this same advice to the athletes on the Junior National Team that she helps coach. Gudinas wants to be the best role model possible for the impressionable young racquetball players.

"We try to tell the players on the national team to idolize someone who will teach them to work hard and be respectful. Most of the kids are really good at figuring out who they should look up to," observes Gudinas.

After her athletic career is over, Gudinas plans to put her nutrition degree from Illinois Benedictine College to good use. She says that she might keep coaching, but she wants to stay away from the court as much as possible.

"I’ve played racquetball for so long that when I’m done playing I’ll probably teach some, but I’d like to have something completely separate to take up the majority of my time," she says.

With her foot still in a cast, Gudinas is training for the USRA Singles National Championships, May 26-31, in Houston, Texas. The cast will come off just days before Nationals, but Gudinas says that she’s been in the position before where she had to take several days off with only a few days to prepare and ended up playing great.

"My goals are really just to do whatever it takes. I’m going to work on my serves and on the things that I’m going to need to have for Nationals," she says. "I’m going to have to work harder on the things that I can work on to make up for the plyometric training that I can’t do right now."