University of North Texas Athletics
Finnish National Champ Signs With UNT
3/25/2021 3:00:00 PM | Women's Tennis
DENTON — Finland's number one ranked under 18 girls tennis player in 2019 signed a national letter of intent to play for the Mean Green on Monday.
Liisa Vehviläinen, a three-time national champion who is a two-time Finland National Player of the Year honoree is excited to join the North Texas squad and continue her dreams of becoming an elite tennis player.
"UNT is a perfect place for me to improve my tennis and continue my studies," said Vehviläinen. "I was really flattered with the coaching staff and I really liked the way both head coach Sujay Lama and assistant coach Rodrigo De Almeida spoke about the program and how they believe in training players. We share the same vision."
Vehviläinen's tennis achievements are vast.
Along with her national championships in singles and doubles at three different age groups, Vehviläinen has a pair of Women's Tennis Association top 1000 victories. She's won an International Tennis Federation doubles title and reached the finals of an ITF singles championship.
"I believe the UNT coaches can help me achieve my full potential," Vehviläinen said. "The team has high goals for the future and I'm really grateful for getting the chance to help that team equipped with great players and coaches in achieving all their goals."
Vehviläinen is also a stellar student.
She's been recognized for combining studies with athletics and received a "Laudatur" on her National Final Exam, which is the best possible grade one can receive. Only five percent of all student receive that grade.
"UNT has everything to take my game to the next level and come closer in achieving my dreams as a tennis player," Vehviläinen said. "It gives me a great opportunity to combine all that with a quality education."
Coach Lama On Vehviläinen
"Liisa has all the characteristics we look in a student-athlete. She is an accomplished and experienced player in the international arena and has a desire to play professionally after college. The combination of athleticism, speed and power along with her grit as a competitor really jumped out when we were evaluating her. We believe Liisa will be an impact player for us and help us take that next step as a program. We are absolutely delighted to welcome her to our mean green family."
