2025 College Awareness Month - Player Spotlights
WESTBOROUGH, MA - This October, we’re celebrating College Awareness Month, a time to explore and dive into the unique aspects of the college experience. In this feature, we caught up with three former New England junior players who are currently playing varsity tennis or club tennis through Tennis On Campus.
We asked them how they chose their respective schools, what has been the highlight of their college tennis experience thus far and what advice they would give to junior players going through the college selection process.
Alek Karagozyan, from Belmont, MA
Junior on the Brown University Club Tennis Team
Brown's uniquely flexible curriculum and highly collaborative student culture compelled me to apply. Many of my tennis, music, and academic mentors attended Brown, and listening to their wonderful college experiences solidified my choice. On a broader note, I also considered the proximity of Providence relative to my hometown, as well as the splendid downtown restaurants and ambience near our campus.
Two distinct moments come to mind. During an invitational tournament against Yale, I played a fun competitive doubles match against my favorite doubles partner from USTA junior tennis. I enjoyed sharing the court with him once again, even though we were opponents, and getting the win also felt good. Outside of the court, my first club tennis social event as a freshman was an extremely memorable experience, since I began bonding with all my teammates beyond practices or matches.
Alek Karagozyan
A major piece of advice that I give current junior players is to consider which parts of tennis they value the most. Varsity is a great choice if you love continuously competing against other schools surrounded by a tight-knit small unit of players. Similarly, club tennis is a fantastic choice if you love a flexible practice and match schedule with a larger group of fellow players. Either way, my advice is to continue to play the sport that you love in college!
Caroline Driscoll, from Brookline, MA
Senior on the Stanford University Women’s Tennis Team
Stanford was an easy decision because it offers the best of both worlds. Excellence in the classroom and on the tennis court.
Myt most memorable experience was beating Texas Tech as the underdogs at NCAAs this past spring! Also, all of the friendships I have made through college tennis.
Do not care about what other people think, choose the school that is right for YOU because at the end of the day, you will be the one going there.
Caroline Driscoll
Liz Goncalves, from Ludlow, MA
Graduate student (5th year) on the WPI Club Tennis Team
I chose to attend WPI because of its strong and reputable project-based curriculum for engineering, as well as its tight-knit community. I’m currently pursuing my master’s degree in engineering management, and I graduated last year with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. Looking back, I couldn’t imagine myself at another college. I’m proud of the person I’ve become over the past four years and am grateful for the experiences I've had.
A highlight of my college tennis experience has been serving on our club’s executive board for the past four years and helping lead our team to earn USTA New England’s Club of the Year Award in 2023. That recognition gave us the opportunity to travel to Rome, GA and compete at Nationals against top club teams from across the country. That trip was one of my favorite college memories.
Liz Goncalves
Don’t be afraid to take risks—even if they weren’t part of your original plan. In high school, I was set on playing varsity tennis and initially overlooked WPI because they only offered tennis at the club level. Choosing club tennis while pursuing a challenging academic program turned out to be one of the best decisions I made. It allowed me to maintain a healthy balance between academics and extracurriculars.
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