'No weakness': Auburn's Angella Okutoyi strengthens tennis team

AUBURN, Ala. – Given the choice of doing standard or modified pushups, Angella Okutoyi chose the former.

When Okutoyi’s Billie Jean King Cup captain suggested the team make pushups part of their training regimen, her teammates wanted to do the modified version.

“I was like, ‘No guys, we should not do that,’” Okutoyi recalled. “’We should do the actual ones. We should show no weakness right now.’ Then everyone did it.”

A hashtag was born.

#NoWeakness

“When we are down, we all see the negative part instead of the positive part,” she said. “Every time I’m down, I tell myself it’s not time to show weakness now. You should show strength.”

Before and during her three seasons on the Plains, Okutoyi has consistently shown strength, earning All-SEC honors in 2024 and 2025. Ranked No. 55 nationally in singles, the junior from Nairobi, Kenya, has a 26-5 singles record heading into this week’s NCAA Auburn Regional.

At the 2024 African Games, she became the first Kenyan to win the singles gold medal in 46 years.

“I had my notebook everywhere,” said Okutoyi, who also won a silver medal in doubles. “I had written that I wanted to come out with a gold no matter what. I didn’t have a Plan B. It meant a lot to me and I feel like it also meant a lot to Auburn. I told myself that I wanted to win this, and I went for it.”

By the time she enrolled at Auburn in the fall of 2022, Angella had already won junior doubles titles at Wimbledon and the Australian Open and was the top-ranked junior in Africa.

Attracted to Auburn by the opportunity to compete with teammates who also aspire to play professionally, the Tigers had something else in their favor during the recruiting process.

“The color, too,” Okutoyi said. “I love blue. When I’m done with college, I’ll be ready to fully play pro.”

When first-year head coach Jordan Szabo came to Auburn after helping Texas A&M win the 2024 national championship, Okutoyi, DJ Bennett and Ava Esposito all chose to remain on the Plains.

“Look at us now,” Angella said. “We’re thriving.”

Indeed, they are. Ranked No. 7 in the country, Auburn enters the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championship as the No. 9 seed, the highest in program history.

“We want people to see us like the new Auburn,” Okutoyi said. “Like, we’re good. You should be scared when you see us on the court. I feel like we’ve been showing that and we’re trying to do that in NCAAs, too.”

Studying and competing more than 8,000 miles from her home brings challenges, says Okutoyi.

“I miss Kenyan food so much,” she said, with a flatbread called chapati topping her list.

An overcomer, Angella and her twin sister, Rosie, lived in an orphanage for months after their mother died during childbirth.

“I feel like it’s more tough when you see someone when they pass away than when you haven’t seen them,” she said. “I would love for her to be here, but what can we do?” 

Raised by their maternal grandmother, the twins excelled in tennis, learning the game as 4-year-olds.

“The only sport I ever played,” Angella said. “She took really good care of us.”

An admirer of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, Okutoyi seeks to emulate Serena’s style.

“I like how she fights on the court. She never gives up,” Angella said. “I like to do that when I’m playing. I like to bring energy, be fierce and motivated.”

Speaking of style, Okutoyi launched her clothing brand in 2024, named for her initials, “AO.”

“The A and the O together represent the racket,” said Okutoyi, a student in Auburn University’s Harbert College of Business. “I try to come with different designs every time.”

Okutoyi has designs on a national championship after helping Auburn defeat five top 10 teams this season.

The Tigers take on South Carolina State Friday at 1 p.m. CT at Auburn’s Yarbrough Tennis Center, the next opportunity for Angella Okutoyi to live out her hard-earned mantra. No weakness.

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer