The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1544864
MAY/JUNE 2026 ■ 13 TRACKING THE PACK After beginning her collegiate career near the bottom of the lineup for the NC State women's tennis team, Mia Slama emerged as one of the top rising stars around the country this year as a sophomore. Slama, a Boca Raton, Fla., resident who was the No. 8 overall recruit in the 2024 cycle, took control of the Wolf- pack's top spot this spring and became a critical part of a lineup that in April claimed the program's second-ever ACC Tournament championship. Here are the highlights of a recent Q&A with Slama, who was named Most Outstanding Player of the ACC Tournament. What has it been like for you to see the improvement you've made over the last two seasons? "College tennis is a big adjustment. You're in a different environment, dif- ferent coaches than you've had for your whole life, basically. You're with a team now. My whole junior career was very individual. It was a big adjustment for me. "I think freshman year took a while for me to adjust. I'm fortunate I got that experience, though, because that helped me get to where I am today. Coming into my sophomore year, I knew what to expect and I knew what I needed to do better. I'm just very happy be- cause the results are paying off pretty quickly. I've been doing pretty well." What was the biggest adjustment you had to make in order to find success this season? "The team aspect. Tennis is kind of an individual sport, but with the team it be- comes a team sport. That was really big for me, focusing on how I can make my practice good while also making my teammates' practices as good as pos- sible. And then during matches, lift- ing everyone up, not just yourself. I used to be really quiet on the court, but after every point I'm just like, 'Come on!' "Also, the coaching is very dif- ferent. I had my dad coach me my whole life, so to have two completely new coaches was an adjustment. I had to adjust to how they coached me and the way they speak to me and how I speak to them." How much does the team aspect help you in the middle of a challenging match? "It's been amazing. I feel like we have a really good team dy- namic. We all have each other's backs, we all work really hard. We're always on good terms with each other because we have the same goals. I think we all compete really hard. Everyone is fighting so hard, so we've just got to keep going because it's more than just myself. It's for the whole team." What has it been like for you rising to the top of the lineup this season? "It's been awesome. I'm really fortunate that [head coach] Simon [Earnshaw] has given me the oppor- tunity to play these matches. It's been really cool for me to learn and have the confidence that I know I can play with these people and I can beat these people. I think I wouldn't have had that opportunity if I was playing lower in the lineup. It really boosted my confidence." NC State hadn't beaten North Carolina in a match since 2023. How much fun was it to knock them off in the ACC Tour- nament semifinals, including your win over No. 2 Reese Brantmeier? "That was so much fun. Toward the end of the second set, it didn't look great for me. I was four match points down, but once I was in the third set, it was really thrilling. "I thought [freshman Victoria Osuigwe] was going to finish it out; I didn't even think I was going to finish. And then, all of a sudden, Tori's match becomes closer and closer. I was just like, OK, you know what? Maybe it's my time to shine. Win- ning that match point and seeing all my team- mates rushing toward me, there's no feeling to describe it. It was just so much fun." What's it like for you, as a sophomore, to be playing each team's best player every match? "It's great. I feel like there's a lot of responsibil- ity on me, but I love the pressure. I think that's the best part of competition. If there's no pressure, it's not fun. … I'm just grateful that Simon and [as- sistant coach] Dave [Secker] have given me the op- portunity to play in the first place." — Noah Fleischman SITTING DOWN WITH: Women's Tennis Sophomore Mia Slama Slama had compiled a 24-11 singles record heading into NC State's NCAA Sweet 16 matchup against Texas on May 8. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS