By RJ Wolcott, WSU News & Media Relations, WSU Insider
Six months after playing her final tennis match for Washington State University, Elyse Tse stood in front of a raucous crowd at the Billie Jean King Cup Playoffs. The 21-year-old Coug was making her debut at the premiere women’s tennis tournament competing for New Zealand.
Standing opposite Tse was Iga Swiatek, the No. 2 ranked women’s tennis player in the world who previously held the sport’s top spot for more than two consecutive years. Her serves regularly leave her racket traveling in excess of 100 miles per hour. The match was also taking place in Swiatek’s native Poland.
“The matchups came out the day before, so once I learned I was going to play her, I thought, wow, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Tse recalled.
Tse is ranked within the top 1,000 women in the world, but up until the week prior, she wasn’t designated as New Zealand’s top single’s player for the event.
”I was super excited and really looking forward to it,” she added. “Not a lot of people can say they played the world No. 2 right after graduating college, so it was crazy for a debut.”
The noise around her was tremendous, as Polish fans beat drums and cheered for Swiatek. As she awaited the first serve, Tse thought back to a previous Pac-12 tournament match where she encountered a raucous crowd in her opponent’s favor. The fact that Swiatek also double faulted off the bat also gave Tse comfort; we’re both human after all, she thought.
While Tse lost 6-0, 6-1, her memories are predominantly of joy and disbelief at having stood opposite one of the game’s great players.
“I couldn’t stop smiling,” Tse recalled.
The fortitude and Cougar spirit she showed on the court was the same that propelled her as a student athlete. But Tse’s legacy at WSU is more than a standout tennis player, having served as a mentor to her fellow student athletes and an ardent supporter of all things WSU Athletics.
From Auckland to Pullman
With high school graduation approaching, Tse sought the advice of her parents and coaches. Going professional was an option, but she ultimately chose college tennis to prepare physically and mentally for the life of a tennis pro.
Tse met with several colleges in the United States virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A Zoom call with members of the WSU tennis team pushed the Pullman school to the top of her list.
“What caught me was how international the team was,” Tse recalled. “They had girls from Egypt, Thailand, Taiwan, and so with that as well as great coaches, I knew it was the right fit.”
The transition to collegiate tennis was challenging on several levels. Tse was accustomed to playing New Zealand’s top professionals, a relatively small pool of players. At WSU, she faced new players at every event. The competition within the Pac-12 was also a significant step up.
One positive was getting to play as part of a team, which brought with it welcomed comradery.
“The biggest thing that stood out about Elyse were the things you can’t teach,” said Josh Graetz, now the head coach of WSU’s Women’s Tennis Team who arrived in Pullman during Tse’s tenure. “She did not know what quitting was. She never gave up, not even for one point. She is a fierce competitor who loves to train and is eminently coachable.”
As her time at WSU went on, Tse became a leader within the team, Graetz said, and played with numerous teammates in doubles. The fact she is a lefty is helpful in doubles, but it’s her energy and eagerness to support her teammates that made her a great partner, particularly for younger players, he added.
Off the court
For as involved as Tse was with tennis, it was remarkable to those around her how invested she became in Cougar Athletics as a whole. An internship-turned part-time job was pivotal in that process.
Tse knew she wanted to pursue graphic design as a career long before she arrived in Pullman. She enrolled in the Digital Technology and Culture program, where she took classes on typography, animation, and video games.
As part of her studies, she took an internship with the Creative Services Department within WSU Athletics under the tutelage of Lisa Waite. Tse worked on all things athletics, from creating the elaborate brims of straw hats given away at Apple Cup, to designing posters and other promotional materials for a swath of teams and events.
“Been in the business quite a few years,” said Waite, who spent more than two decades working on graphic design projects for the NBA and WNBA. “Elyse is a top-five person in my history of working with entry level designers. She is able to manage a high-pressure workflow while maintaining high level of creativity. She is someone you can count on.”
The full list of projects Tse worked on while a student intern and then a part-time employee is too long for Waite to recount. Some standouts include handling the branding of senior recognition dinners as well as producing an array of materials for Night with Cougar Athletics events.
The future
Since graduating in May, Tse competed in a number of tournaments internationally. Her goal in the year ahead is to push for a top 500 ranking among singles players, while liking playing a significant number of doubles events. She also finds time when not training or playing to help her sister and friends out with their graphic design and social media needs.
While Tse is back in Auckland preparing for a southern hemisphere summer schedule full of tennis events, Waite still keeps in touch and knows her former staffer is bound for success in tennis.
“We’re looking forward to cheering her on in-person when she plays at Wimbledon,” Waite said.