Derrin Lerner is a junior on the Lafayette Leopards men's tennis team and a chemical engineering major with an electrical and computer engineering minor from Cherry Hill, New Jersey. He grew up playing multiple sports but ultimately fell in love with tennis at six years old. Lerner also developed a passion for music at a young age. When he is not on the courts or studying in Rockwell Integrated Sciences Center (RISC), he can often be found in music studios around campus.

"I think the biggest thing college tennis has taught me is discipline and time management. Being part of a team honestly makes the time that I spend doing work more productive because you don't really have too much opportunity to slack off." — Derrin Lerner

Between all aspects of his life, he balances the busy schedule of being a student-athlete with his dedication to his studies and passions. Next year, he will serve as president of Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society.

Inside the Match

Do you have any pre-match routines?
The biggest thing is the day before, just drinking as much water as I possibly can. During classes, I'll refill my water bottle before every class because tennis matches can go on for like four hours.

What is one word you can give me to describe your playing style?
Definitely something along the lines of endurance or out grinding, which is a tennis thing we say, like if you're a grinder. I'm usually not the strongest or tallest against my opponents, but I think I'm usually the fastest or have the most endurance.

How would you describe the way you play on the court?
Usually the way I play is in that four-hour time span, especially in the early fall or late spring when it's pretty hot outside and the sun's blazing. My thing is in the third set, not being tired, being the last one standing on the court, having the longest match and running down every ball no matter what the point is, and frustrating my opponent through good defense.

What would be your dream arena to either play in or watch a tennis match?
If I could play in any stadium, I would say Roland Garros, the French Open clay courts. We don't really have clay courts in America, and definitely not in college tennis here. I think it'd be fun to slide around a lot, so getting to play a huge stadium match on fancy European clay would be super cool.

To watch, probably the Australian Open. I've never been over there, so I think it'd be cool.

Who is your favorite professional tennis player?
Rafael Nadal has always been my favorite tennis player. I try to mirror his play style with the topspin, back-and-forth endurance, sprinting, and somewhat defensive play. For current players, I like Alcaraz, and Coco Gauff is great. I got to play on Gauff's home course in Delray Beach once.

On College Hill

What would you say is the reason why you chose Lafayette?
The engineering program is great. I love engineering here. I'm doing it as a major and a minor, and I don't regret that. The professors are great, and I definitely got a good idea of that from touring here. Other than that, touring the campus was so beautiful. Out of every school I toured, it was the most like, "I can see myself walking through this campus every day." They do a good job keeping it pretty.

What is your specific major or minor?
Chemical engineering major and electrical and computer engineering minor.

Outside of tennis, what has been your favorite part of your college experience so far?
Definitely the many different friendships I've gotten to make because there's becoming friends with your teammates, but also getting to meet so many different people through classes and even just meeting people at the dining halls. Especially in the early years, getting to be friends with so many different people from all over the country and from different lifestyles has been really nice. That definitely keeps college fresh and fun.

What are some of your favorite things to do around campus or favorite spots on campus?
My favorite study spot and favorite place to do work is definitely Rockwell Integrated Sciences Center building. It's my favorite interior on campus, and I focus pretty well here. Other than that, definitely the newer McCartney side of the dorms. I like hanging out with my friends there.

How would you describe the Lafayette community?
Everyone's very determined. I haven't met many people here who don't have some type of goal or passion, whether a sport or a class, where everyone's just optimistically working towards pretty much everything that they're doing here. That's really motivational, and I really like the community here.

Has there been a class that you've really enjoyed?
As an underclassman, a lot of the classes are more general, so this semester I've gotten to have classes where I can actually see myself in this field. One of the chemical engineering classes, we call it unit operations, but it's heat transfer and how pipes and valves work. Getting to do visual learning and math with real pieces of equipment that I'll probably be working with one day was definitely very informative. Professor Ben Horn, who teaches that class, has been one of my favorite professors here. He's not just great at lecturing, but he's super easy to talk to in his office. That's been a really helpful class for me in terms of seeing myself out of college doing something.

What does a typical in-season day look like for you?
We have classes throughout the day, and then we meet after class for practice, which is usually around two hours. At practice, we typically do conditioning, general drills, and, if time allows, some individual-focused work. Toward the end of the week or before matches, we'll usually do something as a team during the season, like getting dinner after practice, just to keep the team chemistry strong. 

How would you say you have grown outside of tennis while being at Lafayette?
College is definitely a time that I feel like I've kind of come into my own. I've really become more sociable and being part of so many different social groups has really helped me become as friendly and talkative as I want to be.

Are you involved in any clubs or organizations on campus?
Tennis is my biggest involvement, I do have some involvement through engineering with AIChE, which is the Institute of Chemical Engineers. I got to go to a conference for that. Also Tau Beta Pi, which is the general engineering honor society. I'll get to be president of that next year, so that'll be a big commitment, but I'm glad I'll get to get even more involved in such a cool field.

What advice would you give to an incoming student-athlete?
Connections are key, and that goes two ways. Especially if you're going to be on a bigger team, trying to make connections on your team and find upperclassmen teammates to be your friend or mentor and guide you through college if you need it. Connections with professors. The professors here are so available and friendly, which is something you don't really realize coming from general high school classes. I would say take total advantage of the academic opportunities you have here outside of just scheduled class time.

Serving Success

What are your dreams and goals postgraduation, professionally and personally?
Professionally, I picked engineering because I get to hopefully be hands on, not just sitting in a cubicle all day, but getting to work on real projects and tangible things that hopefully help people. I'd want to work in any field like that, especially with chemical engineering because there's a lot of new research.

Who is someone you look up to and why?
My parents, especially my mom. She did a lot to get where she is now and give me what I have now. She faced adversity living in Russia, and she made a huge decision to be one of the first people in her family to move to America and start a whole new life for better opportunities. If you ask her, she'd say it's paid off, and she's given me a lot of opportunities here because of the choices she made, so I definitely respect her for that.

What is your favorite thing to do after a long season or during the summer?
I really like nature, so there's some really nice nature trails around where I live. Spending an afternoon walking around outside through some trails with friends, getting to talk, walk around, or sit down and play a game of some kind definitely makes the day go by faster.

Quick Hits

Who would you want to play you if your life was a movie?
Michael Cera because I feel like he can play the somewhat nerdy engineering type, but also he's a comedian, so he keeps things lighthearted at all times.

Do you have any hidden talents or hobbies outside of sports and engineering?
I played jazz piano throughout high school, so I was in a jazz band for that. I try to keep it up at school. I don't really have the time to be in one of the school bands, but there's practice rooms on campus and I have my own keyboard, so I try to keep up the music part of my life.

If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?
I would say Australia. Not just for the Australian Open, but I really like koalas. They have some cool animals over there that I'd love to see. It's also just across the world, so there's definitely a lot of sightseeing to do there. 

Do you have a favorite childhood movie?
I always liked the old Marvel superhero movies as a kid, like the older Spider-Man movies. I don't know if I have a strict favorite though. I liked whatever was put in front of me.

Do you have a favorite home cooked meal?
I'm a big pasta guy, but definitely my mom's chicken parm.

Do you speak Russian?
Not well. I'm trying to learn and get better on my phone with Duolingo. It's a goal of mine to actually be able to speak it well at some point in my life.

Do you have a favorite takeout place in Easton?
Amigos downtown Easton is really good,I'm a big fan of that. Also on campus, formerly Vinnie V's, now Campus Corner, are pretty easy options when you have a late night of doing homework.