At 3:23 p.m., the final bell rings. Students head out of the building to catch their bus or get picked up. Outside, students will find the girls tennis team practicing after school on the Niles West tennis courts. One of these players is a tall blonde girl named Emma Velimirovic. She is there almost every day of the week, practicing with the varsity team. This isn’t just any varsity player, though. Emma is a freshman, and she is headed to the IHSA State Finals at Hersey High School this Thursday, Oct. 24.
Over the weekend, Velimirovic played in a qualifying match that would determine whether or not she would move on to the state-wide competition. The skills she’s been building for years finally paid off.
“It still feels very unreal to me that I have the chance to go to State. I’m feeling so happy and really excited to see what it is like. My thoughts are to just go there and to play my game, while learning things that I can improve on in my matches,” Velimirovic said.
Being on varsity as a freshman is uncommon. A player’s expertise and skill level must be on par with those of seniors, and Velimirovic’s skills are exactly that. Brad Wilson, the coach of girls varsity tennis, is impressed with Emma’s abilities.
“Emma’s skills aren’t something you often see in freshman; it’s nice to see someone new to the team exhibit that,” Wilson said.
Velimirovic was introduced to the sport at age 9 by her mother, and she decided to stick with it. Tennis became more than a hobby for her; she excelled at playing singles early on, and her success has continued. In the span of 5 years, she has passed upperclassmen who have been playing for double the amount of time she has, or even more.
Velimirovic’s other coach is Ben Grais, who sees a lot of potential in her future on the team. Having a player like Velimirovic ensures the tennis team’s success for the next few years.
“She doesn’t just train hard during practice, but she’s gotten trophies from competitions ever since the school year started. I can see her being a leader of the team in the future,” Grais said.
Any athlete can tell you that balancing school and a sport isn’t an easy task, but Velimirovic seems to do this with ease. She takes difficult classes and has to allow time for practicing and studying, a challenge for many students competing at the varsity level.
“It hasn’t been [difficult] for me. Somehow, I’ve managed to stay on top of everything and I hope to maintain that. Although I have practice after school, I make an effort to come to school early in the morning so I can finish up my homework or study for something,” Velimirovic said.
Freshman English teacher Lisa Rossa finds Velimirovic to be a strong student .
“I’m so happy to have Emma in English this year. She is an exemplary student and just a genuine, solid person all around,” Rossa said.
No matter how Velimirovic does on Thursday, she’s satisfied with this accomplishment.
“It’s already a big achievement to me to make it to State, so regardless of what happens, I know I will be proud of myself,” Velimirovic said.
