FLUSHING MEADOWS, N.Y. — Just a few short weeks ago, Isabel Gamez was assisting with the Menomonie High School girls tennis team as the Mustangs prepared for the 2026 season. Last week, Gamez and her Batten University tennis teammates were at one of professional tennis’ Grand Slam events, the U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center near New York City.

Gamez, a 2024 Menomonie graduate, is a junior at Batten University (formerly Virginia Wesleyan University) in Virginia Beach, Virginia, majoring in social work and in her third season on the women’s tennis team.

While some of her teammates have been to past U.S. Open events, this was Gamez’s first trip to one of tennis’ premier events, where she was able to see some of the sport’s best players.

“I personally loved my experience at the U.S. Open,” Gamez said. “It was unlike any experience I have experienced before.”

Gamez saw Aryna Sabalenka, the current No. 1 women’s singles player, and Carlos Alcaraz, who finished as the No. 1 men’s singles player in 2025 and is currently No. 3, play their way to wins in their matches.

“She (Sabalenka) was an amazing player to watch, and I was fortunate enough to see her win her match,” Gamez said. “She is a very loud player, and even high up in the stands we could hear her grunting.

“Right after Sabalenka’s match came Carlos Alcaraz. I was amazed by his play, and it has always been a dream of mine to see him play live. I was able to watch his first two sets before giving my Arthur Ashe Stadium ticket to another teammate so they could enjoy his match as well.”

The team finished up the day by watching Alexander Blockx of Belgium take on Marcelo Tomás Barrios Vera.

“One of my teammates (Zoe Vliegen) is from Belgium, so she was especially excited to see him win live,” Gamez said. While Gamez did not have a personal interaction with any of the players, Gamez said Vliegen was able to take a photo with Blockx, as well as get his autograph and one of his personal towels as a souvenir.

Gamez said she chose Batten University for a number of reasons.

“I knew that I wanted to explore more of the world and get out of my hometown for college,” Gamez said. “My brother attends the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Since my brother lives on the East Coast, I thought it would be better to also choose a school on the East Coast.

“Once I started searching for schools on the East Coast, my decision came down to the school’s size and location. I wanted to live somewhere relatively warm and in a nice location. Thankfully, Virginia Wesleyan University (now Batten) is about 10 minutes away from the beach, which was a very positive factor in my decision to attend. Virginia Wesleyan University is a small, private Division III school where classes are small and can be tailored to students’ individual needs.”

“With small class sizes, you receive more individualized help from professors, can ask more questions, and have the opportunity to build relationships with your professors,” Gamez said. “I will say that my university reminds me a lot of high school because it is a relatively small school, which can be a pro or a con depending on the individual. Almost everyone knows everyone, and you have many opportunities to meet new people.”

The size of the tennis team at Batten is considerably smaller than the Menomonie High School girls program, which has upwards of 40 players on the varsity and junior varsity programs combined.

“We have around nine to 10 girls on the team at most,” Gamez said. “This means we all get to know each other pretty well throughout the years. We are each other’s biggest supporters, we do lots of team bonding, and we are honestly like a family. Even when practices are difficult, we complete them together and are always there for one another. Through the ups and downs, you can always rely on your teammates.”

And Gamez has experienced some of the ups and downs during her college tennis career. She suffered a knee injury during the fall of her freshman year, leading up to surgery, and missed out on the competitive part of the season.

Because of the injury, Gamez has seen limited varsity play with the Marlins. Last season, she went 1-0 in No. 6 singles action and 1-0 along with Sarah Reich at No. 3 doubles. She did play in several exhibition matches. While the knee still gives her some trouble, Gamez expects to be back this season.

“As I begin my junior year on the tennis team, two years after my surgery,” Gamez said, “I feel confident in my ability and stamina to play tennis again.”

The Marlins play a spring schedule and do not see action until mid-February.

While in high school, Gamez earned All-Big Rivers Conference first-team honors in 2023 at No. 1 doubles and qualified for the WIAA State Girls Tennis Tournament that season.

Gamez chose a Division III program because she wanted to have a proper balance between academics and athletics. She is planning to complete her degree in three-and-a-half years.

“I am blessed to have coaches who understand the importance of academics and how time-consuming school can be,” Gamez said. “My coaches allow for flexibility when needed and provide reassurance that academics come first. Having that support makes balancing the two much more manageable.”

Menomonie Collegians is a regular feature of Menomonie News Net. The column is not limited to student-athletes, but may be a former Menomonie area student in a play, forensics, music or any type of collegiate competition. If you know of a Menomonie Collegian, please email [email protected].

The column “Menomonie Collegians” by Layne Pitt is licensed under a CC BY SA 4.0 International license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

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