The U of M Tennis Club (UMTC) women’s team has made history at the 2026 Prairie Regional Championships. The team achieved its first-ever series of wins in both singles and doubles competition.
This marks only the second time the women’s team has competed in the championship. They made their debut in 2025 and have now taken a major step forward with this year’s breakthrough performance.
In singles, Estefanía García Reyes showed resilience, earning a 6-4, 7-6 (4) win. Caitlyn Willison overpowered her opponent with a 6-0, 6-2 victory. Marlene Zarychta closed out a hard-fought game 6-3, 6-4 (11-9).
In doubles play, Zarychta and Willison delivered a decisive performance, securing an 8-4 win.
Reyes explained how she adjusted her strategy to secure the win in the closely contested game. “By the end of the second set, obviously the nerves kind of start heating,” said Reyes. “One thing that I try is to keep playing calm and try to avoid any unnecessary risks, so I could keep my confidence in the right level [and] I can keep playing smoothly.”
She outlined the importance of breathing exercises and self-talk to perform at her best during the most critical moments of the game. “During that moment, obviously, you can make mistakes — especially in tennis, it’s part of the sport. For me, it’s important to have positive [and] encouraging self-talk for me to stay in the right mindset and be able to compete at my best level.”
Reyes added, “This year, the group did great in terms of chemistry. We had different programs, it was a very diverse group, but […] we were there with the mindset that we had nothing to lose […] and [tried] to do our best, and I think that was the difference in this year for the team.”
Gabriela Rzeszutek reflected on the lessons from last year and this year’s championships. “Last year was my first year competing after a long time,” said Rzeszutek. “So, this year, I really saw an increase in my strength and performance in tennis. I was really excited to play [and] I didn’t win my matches, but I think I still performed really well, considering the other players were really strong. So it was a good experience and I was happy with how I performed.”
Simreen Shahi shared her thoughts on UMTC. “For me, the tennis club is about community,” said Shahi. “I’ve played all my life, or for as long as I can remember, so coming to university [and] finding out like-minded people, it’s very fun. And this year, I got to travel with a lot of my friends, [which was a] great experience.”
Shahi described how she balances her academic schedule with the demands of playing tennis. “It can be hard at times, schedule conflicts do happen. If I’m not able to make it to practice, I try to balance it out another way, maybe I’ll […] train at the gym instead for tennis. But most times I plan my classes around practice.” She included, “[It’s] just a priority thing for me.”
