Dan Stickradt
Sports Scene
UTICA — When Davina Nguyen was a freshman, she gained a ton of respect on the tennis courts as a rising star.
Now a senior, Nguyen is in the final stretch of a phenomenal prep career that is one of the most impressive for a player who does not hail from a power school. She does not live in Birmingham or Bloomfield Hills, or Troy or Rochester or even West Bloomfield, Midland, Ann Arbor, or Grosse Pointe.
She lives in Utica, just over the border in Macomb County. She is one of the most successful players ever to hail from Macomb County.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” admitted Nguyen. “When I came into high school, I just hoped to do well. I never imagined any of this.”
Before Nguyen’s arrival in 2012, the school had not sent a player to the state finals in years — if ever. “They don’t have much history in tennis,” said Nguyen. “I think I was their first champion.”
The talented Nguyen is making up for lost time. With over 60 career wins in a Chieftains uniform, she has compiled quite a resume. As a freshman in 2012, she entered the Division 1 state finals as the No. 5 seed at No. 1 singles and eventually upset Clarkston’s Katie Brozovich, the No. 2 seed, 7-5, 7-5, to claim the state title.
As a sophomore, Nguyen carried the No. 3 seed into the Division 1 tournament and advanced to the semifinal before bowing out to No. 2-seeded Lexi Baylis of Clarkston, 6-3, 7-6.
In her junior year, Nguyen went 4-0 at the finals and avenged Baylis in the No. 1 singles final, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. Three trips to at least the semifinals and two state titles later, her resume is quite stacked.
The three-time MHSTECA All-State First Team, All-Macomb County First Team, and All-MAC White Division honoree is off to a 10-0 start this season and is a candidate for Miss Tennis, given annually to the state’s top senior by the MHSTECA.
She is bound for Michigan State University in the fall, after receiving offers from multiple colleges, including College of William & Mary and Rutgers University. Nugyen has also shined at the United States Tennis Association level, including a 16s national title.
Fighting through some nagging injuries, it was Nugyen’s mother, Tam Pham, who talked her into playing as a senior. “I didn’t know I would play this year. I had thoughts of not playing,” offered Nguyen. “But my mom talked me into it. She said I had a great chance to win it all again and win Miss Tennis. That is such an honor.”
Although there have been a handful of three-time state singles champions in various flights, few exist in Division 1 and even fewer exist who have won three times all at No. 1 singles. Nguyen has a chance to join the state’s elite before she heads to East Lansing to play for MSU.
“That is my goal, to win it again,” said Nguyen, who does not like to talk about tennis too much away from the court. “I am looking forward to the state [tournament], but sad that [high school] tennis is almost over. But I have Michigan State [to look forward to]. The coaches are very personable there, and they made me feel welcome there.”
Nguyen is currently ranked in the top 100 nationally for high school students, eighth in the Great Lakes region, and second overall in Michigan for those 18 and under.
Even with those rankings, she still has some unfinished business on the prep courts. “It’s coming up fast,” said Ngugyen. “I still have a shot to win again.”
Win – something that Davina Nguyen does best.