She refreshed the page every 10 minutes. The suspense was killing her.

Medy Blankvoort desperately wanted to know the results of the 2012 All-American tennis selections. She was 16 and 1 last season. Only one loss in all those matches.

She beat girls from Mississippi State, Southern Methodist, Tulane and she was even part of a winning doubles team against an LSU opponent. Growing up playing tennis outside of Amsterdam in the Netherlands, she never dreamed she could do it.

Now, she sat impatiently in front of her laptop hoping that dreams just might come true.

It turns out Blankvoort was not selected as an All-American this year. Her 16 and 1 record was not enough. But even though she doesn’t have the title, she hasn’t given up on proving herself this fall.

After Blankvoort heard the news, she was heartbroken. So heartbroken that she went 2-0 in flight A singles at SFA. Then 3-0 at the ULL Invitational.  She knows the only cure is redemption, so she extended that 16-1 record to 21-1.

And she didn’t just win those matches. At ULL she only gave up six games in three matches. That’s six out of 42 games.

Both coaches and teammates attribute Blankvoort’s success to her work ethic. Sophomore Sophie Rufyikiri said, “I definitely think she’s the hardest worker on the team. She motivates the team very well, and I think she’s done a great job as the team’s captain.”

ULM Head Coach Terrence De Jongh said he has been very impressed with Blankvoort’s performance since last spring, but even more with her role as a teammate.

De Jongh said, “Medy has been here longer than anyone else, and she can be that second voice helping the coaches and helping the team to get better by explaining to the younger girls why we are working so hard.”

Freshman Iris Van Leeuwen agreed that Blankvoort has made her feel very welcome here, and sophomore Silivia Tumova said Blankvoort motivates the team both in practice and at workouts.

“She leads me, and I need it sometimes,” Tumova said.

The good news is that as a junior, Blankvoort still has plenty of time to reach her goal of becoming ranked and being selected as an All-American tennis player.

“If she keeps working hard and playing well, I am confident she will make it,” De Jongh said. “She still has an opportunity to win out this fall and be successful again in the spring, and then they will have to notice her.”

The team will travel to Tuscaloosa, AL., for the ITA Regional Championship Oct. 19-22, where Blankvoort will continue in her pursuit of that All-American title.