Senior Sobia Shethwala made Niles North history over the course of Oct. 18–19, becoming one of just two Niles North athletes ever to win over 100 games. Meanwhile, for the second time in her high school career, she qualified for State, taking home third place at sectionals. At State, on Oct. 24, Shethwala won her first match 6–0, 6–1, and her third 6–0, 6–0, but lost her second and fourth matches, 1–6, 0–6 and 1–6, 5–7, respectively. She now holds All-State Honors, and is among the 24 best tennis players in Illinois. 

Her accomplishment came after Shethwala was unable to qualify for State during her junior year. 

“The competition was just really a lot, and I wasn’t able to make it through the last qualifying round,” Shethwala said. “But this year, the fact that I was able to do that just kind of showed me that growth that I had.”

Shethwala is always searching for a way to up her game: “If I ever feel like there’s something that I’m lacking in, I’ll talk to my coaches, and I’ll try to make that the focus of my practice. Obviously, just doing drills to make me better. I also try it outside of practice—during off-season, I’ll definitely try to hit with people who are also really good. I also like to play competitively—I like to play actual matches against people, just to get more match experience.” 

In a match, Shethwala pointed out, it’s not so much losing that bothers her, it’s whether she attributes her loss to herself. 

“If it’s kind of a battle and the other person’s just objectively better than me, it’s not something that really upsets me, but if it’s an issue that I created in the game, then I get upset because I just get kind of frustrated and disappointed with myself, because I know I’m capable of better, and of more effort.” 

Her coaches, on the other hand, don’t seem as critical of her. “I take no credit for it,” head tennis coach and chemistry teacher Andy Klamm said of Shethwala’s state qualification. “She’s really done work year-round for four years and it’s an honor to get to watch her and give her advice, but she would have done it with or without me, probably.”

“She’s a true athlete,” Klamm said. “Some tennis players, they wouldn’t translate to other sports. I feel like Sobia could do anything. [If] she wanted to run track, she could eventually be a state qualifier in track…she’s developed a lot more power and strength. She always had technique, but when she was a freshman and a sophomore, she just wasn’t strong enough to hit through the better players, and now she’s strong enough to stand up against anyone.”

Shethwala, for her part, disagrees with her coach about his role. “He’s always motivated me, and the advice that he gives is always something that I really have taken to heart.”

Shethwala began playing tennis at age six, bonding over it with her father, who wanted to pass on his own love for the sport. “He would take me out and we would practice by ourselves,” she recalls. “He would be the one to take me to other tournaments. He would be the one to coach me, to advise me. He was the one who was there if I lost a really bad game, or if I won. He wouldn’t ever let things get to my head, in a good way, in a bad way.” 

The appreciation of her teammates is mutual. Shethwala is “one of the most inspiring people I know,” senior and fellow tennis player Anh Nguyen said. “Whenever we’re in practice on the team or even in the classroom, when I’m in physics with her, she’s always the first to ask questions, always the first to be motivating, always the first to be out there and practicing, whether it’s on homework or it’s in tennis. Just seeing her work so hard, playing with coaches, is always so inspiring.”

High school was where she realized her passion for the sport—and found the friends who made her want to continue. “I think my biggest reason for staying in tennis this long is definitely the friendships that I’ve made,” Shethwala said. “They give me energy and spirit, and they make me feel happy. Even if I’m having a really horrible day in tennis, my people will always pick me up.” 

Though Shethwala says she does not intend to pursue tennis professionally, she has surely made her mark on her sport—and on athletics as a whole—at Niles North.