CANADIAN FRESHMAN FINDS COMFORT ZONE IN SEATTLE

By Kimberlie Haner

By Washington Huskies

February 2^nd, 2018

After a strong start in the fall season, freshman Vanessa Wong is ready to help Washington women’s tennis strive for greatness. From the small Canadian tennis scene to receiving an International Tennis Association (ITA) ranking, she has proved that she is read to compete.

CANADIAN FRESHMAN FINDS COMFORT ZONE IN SEATTLE

Wong was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada after her parents and older sister moved there from Hong Kong. Her parents wanted to move to either Canada or Australia because they had family in both places, but everything lined up perfectly for the Wong family to move to Canada.

Growing up, Wong played a lot of sports. She played soccer, volleyball, basketball and track in addition to tennis. However, tennis was her first love. When she was 6 years old, she was dragged to her sister’s practices. Slowly, Wong’s interest in tennis grew.

“I started taking little chunks of her practice time and started cutting her off,” Wong said. “It just grew from there.”

Ever since then, Wong was dedicated to tennis. In Canada, the tennis scene is a bit smaller than in the United States. Because of that, she had to travel a lot. She played with the National Federation for part of her career, but eventually she went on her own. She trained at the local tennis club, but she traveled by herself.

When the time came to look at universities to further her tennis career, Wong was able to narrow it down to two schools: Washington and Ohio State. When she and her parents visited Seattle and thoroughly looked into UW, the Wongs were sold.

“My parents were sold as soon as they saw the academics and the facilities,” Wong said. “Maybe two weeks after the visit, I called Robin and committed. I loved the school and got along with Robin and Denise, but it took some processing. To commit was a big deal for me. I called Robin and chatted and decided it was the place to be. From then on, I was all in.”

Playing throughout Canada introduced Wong to some of her future Washington teammates. Katarina Kopcalic lived in the same neighborhood as Wong. They went to the same elementary school for a few years and the same high school for one year. Their bond influenced Wong’s eventual decision to end up in Seattle.

“It’s so funny with Kat because we were literally one street apart and now we are living in the same apartment,” Wong said. “It has been like a home away from home.”

Kopcalic was not the only Canadian Wong had a relationship with before signing with the Huskies. There are four Canadians on the current roster, Stacey Fung, Kopcalic, Alexis Prokopuik and Wong, and all four of them knew each other.

“In Canada, you know everyone because there aren’t that many players,” Wong said. “I treveled with Alexis with the National Federation. And with Stacey, we played together a lot at nationals. We had played doubles together at nationals. So when I came, I knew half of the team already, which definitely made my transition a lot easier.”

Wong’s fellow Huskies have aided her transition into college. Going into collegiate athletics can be difficult with the increased training schedule along with a heavier school load. However, with the help of her teammates, coaches and others, the transition has been fairly smooth for the freshman.

“The biggest thing for me was the hours,” Wong said. “In general, I can’t say it has been super easy, but it has been so much fun. With the help of the team and the coaches and trainers, living away from home has been fun.”

The hardest part for Wong thus far has been time management. Balancing tennis and school is a difficult challenge, but she has taken it on.

“I like having a packed schedule, but with the school and traveling, it is very packed,” Wong said. “And this is only fall! We traveled twice. I can’t even imagine what spring will be like.”

During the fall season, Wong proved she is a force to be reckoned with. She earned a 9-3 record in singles and a 3-5 doubles record. At the Husky Invite, she took down two ranked opponents. She finished strong by winning the singles title at the Jack Kramer Club Invitational.

“Fall was so much fun,” Wong said. “To end on Kramer was so fun. I obviously didn’t expect it. I was so happy with how I played literally every match, and I got better as the tournament went on. To bounce back and to know that I can do that will help me in the spring.”

The fall was not perfect for the freshman, however. At the Kansas Invitational, she lost all three of her matches. Despite that mental hump to get over, Wong bounced back at Jack Kramer to win the championship.

“I was defeated after Kansas,” Wong said. “The team had been through it all, so they helped me. Robin and Denise and I met and talked through it and reflected back. We looked forward to Kramer as a fresh start. I was so happy with how I did and how I acted. Overall, it was a really positive tournament.”

Choosing her favorite match from the fall was an easy choice. In the championship at Jack Kramer, she faced a freshman from UCLA who Wong also knew from Canada. Playing a friend and having her team there to cheer her on made it an amazing experience for Wong.

“All of the girls were there to watch,” Wong said. “I had played my opponent twice before and lost both times, but we played doubles together, too. We are good friends. I went into the match with a clear mind and played how I wanted to play. I felt so good at the end of the match.”

Because of her impressive play during the fall, the ITA ranking placed Wong at No. 115. With the regular season off to a strong start and a target on her back with the new ranking, Wong has been working hard to keep improving. She has already picked up a big individual win, taking down the No. 23-ranked player from Texas Tech. Between physical and mental training, she is putting her all into her freshman campaign.

“I went into the fall wanting to play my best, then out of nowhere I got ranked,” Wong said. “Hopefully it goes up from here. I am working hard every day because I don’t know what to expect. But I am very excited!”