Tina Jacob
Sophomore - Women's Tennis

The last two seasons, the Bulls have won the MAC’s Freshman of the Year Award, as Miglena Nenova and Andrea Novaceanu both won the award. How important have those two been to the success of the team this year?
They’ve been so important because they make the team that much stronger. Just to the lineup, they add two strong components to singles and doubles. Also, having two players as strong as them on the team, it provides a driving force of motivation for the rest of us to work hard to be able to play at their level. It just gives us the motivation to train to be able to keep up with them.

This year in the fall, the Bulls competed in only one dual match, beating St. Francis (PA), 7-0. Instead, you competed in many tournaments. Do you feel the tournaments will better prepare you for the spring as you enter your conference schedule?
I think so because in tournaments, we play as many as three or four matches in one day over two or three days. That’s a lot more matches than dual matches. By the time you play your last match of the day, you are just totally mentally and physically drained. You learn how to handle yourself. I think it prepares yourself better for the MAC season physically and mentally.

Last year, you won four matches in the conference schedule as the team earned its highest seed since joining the MAC. What are the team’s goals this season, as it returns five starters from last year’s squad?
We are aiming for as high as possible. We want to win the MAC so we’re going for it this year.

All six players on your roster are from different nations, with players from Bulgaria, Romania, New Zealand, Austria and the US as well as you from Singapore. What’s it like playing with such a diverse group?
It’s great because everyone has a different style. They all have a different way of playing. They all learned different things from their coaches. It’s great meeting so many people from different places. Personally, I love traveling and I would love to go to all these different countries. I’ve already been to Austria to visit Kat (Fischer) and all the other countries are on my list right now.

You are from Singapore, which is a nation that is only 264 square miles in the Pacific Ocean by Malaysia and Indonesia. What was it like growing up there?
Quite different from Buffalo in that it’s a big city, like New York City except it’s a little less busy. It’s not very sports-inclined, it’s more education-inclined, so it was nice to come here and have sports and school on an equal level instead of just focusing on school like I did in Singapore.

While growing up in Singapore, you also had the opportunity to play with Federation Cup players in the country. How much fun was it to get the opportunity to get to play against world-class competition?
Singapore teams got to play against some world class players. That was great. We got to play people who ranked in the top-20s. That was crazy because no one on our team had any ranking. My team was all under-20, so we were in awe of these players who had such great rankings. It was great going being able to go out there with no pressure and be able to play them.

Who is your favorite professional tennis player to watch?
I’d have to say Marat Safin. He makes everything look so easy. He’s so talented, but it’s not just his game that’s so entertaining. He’s such an entertainer, just like John McEnroe. He’s interesting to watch, because he doesn’t just have a straight face all the time. Roger Federer, too. He plays like he’s going out for a walk. He makes everything look so easy, so those two players I love watching.

What was the recruiting process like for you as you made your decision to come to college?
One of the main factor’s was that my mom’s sister lives in Rochester, so I have family nearby. (Head coach) Kathy (Twist) was great. She’s amazing. She just makes you feel so comfortable. Even on the phone, you can tell what a great person she is, so those two factors are what made me come here.

Now that you’ve lived in the United States for two years, what do you think are some of the biggest differences between life in Singapore and life in the US?
I’ve traveled a bit of the US—to Boston and New York City—and it’s completely different than Buffalo. I’ve realized there’s no one fixed US. It’s so different everywhere you go. In Buffalo, I feel it’s more quiet and laid back compared to Singapore, where it’s easy to get around, hop on a bus and you’re somewhere. I find that much harder to do in Buffalo. I still like how it is quiet. It is different than Singapore and I kind of like that total opposite.

What has been your favorite moment as a UB athlete?
I would say something that stands out the most over the past two years is the match with Ball State. I think it was the first time we’d ever beaten Ball State. It was a 4-3 decision and I won one of those matches. It just makes me feel good that I was able to contribute to one of the better moments in UB tennis.

“The 10 Questions With…” feature is compiled by Joe Guistina.

02/06/06