The Fire Is Out.....

 Here is the post Natalie made to Face Book this morning....

First I want to take a few minutes to thank everyone who has been by me through so many ups and down, victories, failures, challenges, highs, lows, opportunities, championships, recruiting, surgeries and rehab. Thank you to every single person who has been there for me on my quest for greatness. Thank you to my housing moms/dads/sisters/brothers for creating such amazing atmospheres for me to be a part of. You guys are many of the reasons why the tour is fun and exciting. The people always make the places. So I thank you from the bottom of my heart for that.

I also want to thank my mom, dad, Nic, Ed, and Clementine (the most solid and greatest team anyone could ask for, let alone call mine) for always being there for me. Thank you for pushing me to become the best that I could be. Thank you for pushing me when I needed it most. Thank you for providing the opportunities to glorify God through my talent on the tennis court. Thank you for humbling me everyday and reminding me that I can achieve anything I set my mind to. I'm forever grateful for all that each one of you have done for me the last 22 years of my tennis career. I couldn't have done it without you guys. Thank you for giving me the best 22 years of support while playing this game.

I also want to thank every coach and trainer who has taught, instructed, challenged, and motivated me through the years. Thank you for taking the time to make me better and into the player I am today. Thank you Beth for believing in me even when I was a mere 40 pounds. You truly were an inspiration and monumental at instilling fire and passion into the game for me. From the depths of my heart, thank you.

To the Vol Nation.. The best four years of my tennis career was when I was at Tennessee. I want to thank everyone there who fueled the fire to compete with such passion and love. Thank you for all those who came to our matches and for creating an unbelievable atmosphere and energy, unlike any I have ever experienced. Thank you to the staff who helped me recovery from my injuries and helped me through pivotal moments of rehab. Thank you for always believing in me and challenging me to get better and stronger. Thank you to every team mate I had that pushed me everyday to be better. Thank you for all of the memories and laughs! I'll never forget looking next to me and seeing everyone battling and grinding together, making history. Thank you all. I will always be a Lady Vol for life and bleed orange.

To all of my friends and family, thank you for every bit of support! Without any of you, none of this could have been possible. You guys are the reason I can stand here today and say, I had the opportunity to do something great, impact people around the world, and experience all that I have. Thank you all for taking the ride with me.

With a heavy heart I write this post to announce my retirement from playing tennis. I have been struggling with decision for quite some time but know it's the right move for me moving forward. This game has taught me many things and has exposed me to so much, I'm extremely humbled by all that it has given me and showed me.

Much love to every single person who has walked into my life up until this point.

The closing of one chapter will lead to the opening of another.