(Picture of Michelle playing tennis).

Meet Michelle Arjona-Reyes, a junior here, at Renton High School. This year, Michelle has
played three following sports: soccer, basketball, and tennis. And for all, she has excelled
highly and has shown a great work ethic. She has great qualities and as the tennis coach, coach
Bao describes her, “Michelle is a hard worker and always spends extra time working on her
skills outside of practice. She’s a quick learner and is able to make adjustments on the fly.
During the season she is focused, ready, and a student of the game.” She has devoted her own
time to tennis and shows ambition and determination. These are some top qualities that a
student-athlete should always try to possess.
This year, she went out of her way to achieve so much for her tennis season. Listing some of the
achievements that she has acquired, placing 3rd in the league, winning 10 games out of 12 games
this season continued her position of singles 1, qualified for districts AGAIN, and won two games in
districts received an MVP award that the tennis team had all contributed to voting for and 1st
team singles KingCo league award.

As I interview Michelle about her success, it’ll give us a good idea about how she is as a student-
athlete.

1. How do you feel about beating your past record in leagues?
“I feel really accomplished this year after leagues since I met my goal of making it to the top 3,
but I believe I could push myself even further and make it 2nd place and HOPEFULLY 1st in the
league.”

2. How have leagues and districts affected you and your mindset?

“Leagues and districts really affect my mindset in terms of placement, I really focus on making
sure I have a good placement, for example, I placed 3rd in leagues so I had to face a #4 for
districts which bettered my chances of making it far, but these tournaments also affect my
mindset in terms of negative talk and pressure, since when I lose I start to lose my confidence.”
3. Is there motivation you go by in order to play so well?
“My motivation is trying to beat the people that have beat me, to become better than them, and to
accomplish more goals so I can give Renton and girls tennis more rep.”
4. Is there anyone you look up to for tennis?
“I look up to Carlos Alcaraz because he’s quick and is good at returning almost every ball, which
reminds me of myself, but I also look up to players that are better than me, because they help me
push me to become better.”
5. What strengths do you believe in that help you become a better athlete?
“Some strengths that are having a good mindset help me become a better athlete but I also have
the strength of learning things really quickly which overall helped me throughout my tennis
journey.”
6. Between basketball, soccer, and tennis, which sport is your favorite?
“Tennis and soccer are definitely my top favs, but I’d have to stick with tennis for my favorite.”
7. What is something important you learned from being an athlete?
“Something important that I learned is that losses shouldn’t define who you are as a player, and
everything is a learning experience.”
8. How do you manage your non-athletic schedule combined with your athletic schedule?
“Strive is how I manage my schedule, but also a lot of staying up and catching up.”
9. What do you look forward to doing in your tennis season as a senior?
“I look forward to making it to state next year and making it far and giving Renton tennis more
recognition.”
10. What is something you want to say to encourage other people in sports?
“Something I’d say is to not be afraid of trying new things, especially if you are an athlete who is
committed to one sport because I tried something new and it has gotten me so far, so you never
know what else you can be good at.”

(Photo of Michelle after placing third in leagues.)

Elaborating more on her answer to the final question, she presents that especially in high school
years, don’t hesitate to try something new because you never know what abilities and skills you
could accomplish, the people you could meet, and how to direct it affects your mindset and benefit
you closer to becoming the best version of yourself.
Based on her response on #3 and #9, she has shown that she truly not only considers herself, but
she considers the people that are around her. She considers the other people in hopes of
becoming a school that everyone else would know about and would think about their success in
tennis. With her kindness, let’s see how the tennis team would describe her.
Co-captain Jai Mejia states, “Michelle is a natural and outgoing leader that has a strong sense of
determination and passion with the willingness to learn and help those around her. She’s an
approachable friend that takes the time to understand those who reach out for help whether it is
in or out of the field or court. As an athlete who not only lifts the energy and laughter around the
team, she brings morale and confidence alongside with her.”
Another varsity player, Leanna Monillas states, “I would say she’s very supportive and gives
great energy, she always brings her positivity and spreads it around to the team. Even on her bad
days, she doesn’t let it get to her fully or others!”
With her responses of Michelle, we were able to acknowledge the important facts that she’s
learned through sports, the motivation that she goes through, and the growth that has happened
compared to last year’s season for her. Congratulations to Michelle for her games!