South Whittier student, Stacey Samonte, has become a tennis titleholder with 50 championships under her belt including national and international titles.
Stacey is a student at Graves Middle School in South Whittier School District and has made quite a name for herself in her young tennis career. She currently has 48 national and sectional championship wins, and two international championship wins held in California and New York in 2017.
She began playing tennis when she was 8 years old and comes from a family of tennis players. Her brother, Vincent, currently plays the sport for California High School in Whittier and she says being able to play tennis with her family is one of her favorite things about the sport.
When asked about her love for the game and how playing makes her feel she stated, “Tennis to me is the greatest sport in the world. Playing tennis makes me feel like a champion because winning is based on individual performance. It is a sport were I can show my true self.”
With 50 championships won at such a young age, Stacey said she believes that her success stems from her love of the game.
“I love tennis so I stay fit to hit and practice everyday. I work hard on every point during my match and give my 100% best effort which is tough to do. I try to learn new things about myself when I compete, win or lose.”
Stacey plans on keeping her good academic standing and tennis ranking in order to get a college scholarship and continuing playing the sport collegiately. She plans to pursue a college degree relating to sports medicine and hopes to travel through the U.S. and other countries to compete in Master’s Tennis events.
Way to go Stacey! SWSD is cheering for you!