By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
DE PERE – West De Pere’s Christina Qiu (pronounced like the letter Q) is a senior on the girls’ tennis team.
Christina, the daughter of Joe and Alaine Qiu, has two younger sisters, Lorraine and Catherine.
“I enjoy hanging out with my family, playing tennis, listening to music and drawing,” said Qiu, who describes herself as determined, smart and fun. “Lorraine is 15 and a junior, while Catherine is 12 and in the seventh grade. Lorraine plays tennis with me on the team.”
Qiu’s parents come from China and met in New York.
“They wanted a quieter place to raise their kids, so they picked this area,” Qiu said. “We also had family from around here.”
Qiu participated in track and field her sophomore year, but her junior season was wiped out because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’m still undecided if I’ll join track next spring,” she said. “I also wish I could have done swimming, but it interferes with tennis in the fall.”
Qiu plays at No. 1 singles for the Phantoms and said Wimbledon is her favorite professional tennis tournament.
“It would be cool to play tennis on grass, in another country and enjoy the surroundings,” she said. “My favorite players are Serena Williams Coco Gauff.”
She said her most memorable tennis moment was winning subsectionals during her sophomore year.
“I was playing at No. 3 singles, and I was the only one on my team to make it to sectionals,” said Qiu. “I was a little sad about that but still happy I made it. Winning subsectionals also gave me an embarrassing moment. We were playing in a tiebreaker, and I thought we still had more points to play. My teammates were wondering what I was doing, but I had won the match.”
A few seniors graduated from last year’s team, but Qiu said she still expects a competitive squad this season.
The team is coached by Rachel Benn.
“It’s nice having Rachel as our coach,” Qiu said. “She’s knowledgeable and plans fun practices with lots of games the girls enjoy.”
She still isn’t sure about college but said a bigger city might be in her plans.
“I’m not sure what I’ll study yet or where I’ll go, but I don’t think tennis will be in my future,” Qiu said. “Maybe I’ll play on a club team or do intramurals, but not on a varsity team.”
She also enjoys caramel, coffee-flavored ice cream, horses, the month of May, dogs and science class.