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Sports

Friday, Dec. 28, 2007

Eng able to repeat as best in District

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Katie Eng regained her passion for tennis this fall, bringing to the court the energy that made her such a formidable player in her first few seasons at Modesto High.

"I thought about not playing this year because of planning for college and everything else going on my senior year, but I started going to the (Modesto Fitness & Racquet) Club and started running into my friends," Eng said. "When I began hitting balls with them, I remembered how much I enjoyed tennis."

A rejuvenated Eng returned with the same skills she displayed her junior year, when she was The Bee's Girls Tennis Player of the Year. She again rolled through the Modesto Metro Conference without a challenge and won her second consecutive singles title.

That dominance made Eng an easy selection as The Bee' 2007 Player of the Year.

"I started playing tennis when I was 4 years old, going to the club with my family and hitting balls while my brother (Justin) took lessons," said Eng, who led the Panthers to a 15-0 record and a conference team title. "I then began playing the USTA tournaments, but I stopped those a few years ago."

Instead of hitting the road each weekend to play age-group tournaments, Eng used the time to study, visit friends and talk with her father -- a former cardiologist who has been in a wheelchair since suffering a stroke during her freshman year.

"I'm in the (International Baccalaureate) program, which is demanding, so I made the right choice," said Eng, who is debating whether to play tennis in college. "My first choice is UCLA. My brother is already there, but I wouldn't make their team."

Cal State Stanislaus is another option, Eng said, now that the school has hired Verek Visaraga to start its tennis program. Eng has taken lessons from Visaraga for 12 years and recently visited the Turlock campus. Snagging Eng would be a public relations boon for the Warriors.

Eng's career goal is medicine, perhaps specializing in cardiology.

"I'm enjoying tennis again, and it could be fun to play in college," said Eng, who also received the MMC Sportsmanship Award this season in recognition of her calm demeanor and sense of fair play.

Eng said her success on the court comes from being an aggressive baseline player, combining her steady strokes with forays to the net to put away points.