Senior tennis player Luisa Renovales Salazar is in her second year with the Panthers. Originally from Los Mochis, Mexico, Renovales Salazar started playing tennis at 11 years old. 

Renovales Salazar went to high school at IES Tias in the Canary Islands in Spain and won the Island Regional Tournament, and she was also ranked 290 in the Spanish national rankings. 

Before transferring to Eastern, Renovales Salazar played at Eastern Florida State College, a junior college in Cocoa, Florida. 

In her first season with the Panthers, Renovales Salazar played in 20 matches of dual and singles play, picking up her first win as a Panther against IUPUI as the No. 6 singles player. 

In this Q&A, Renovales Salazar talks about how the women’s tennis season is going so far, her favorite memory with the team and what her favorite pregame meal is. 

Q: When did you first start playing tennis? 

A: “My parents took me to a couple classes when I was little because tennis has always been in my family, but I started when I was 11, and then I probably started competing when I was 13.” 

Q: Pancakes or waffles? 

A: “Pancakes.” 

Q: Do you put anything on your pancakes? 

A: “Just butter. I like syrup, but just butter is always better.”

Q: Do you think the Earth is round or flat? 

A: “Round, of course.” 

Q: How is it living in Spain? 

A: “It’s very fun. It’s warm all the time, and I always go to the beach with my friends. I love it there. I live like 10 minutes away from the beach, and I can see it from my house.” 

Q: How is the travel from the United States back to Spain for breaks? 

A: “We’re six hours [behind]. I think it’s harder to go from here to there. When I come [to Charleston], I go to sleep early, I wake up early. When I go [to Spain], I cannot go to sleep. I’ll wake up around 12, 1 o’clock, and it’s terrible adjusting to those times.” 

Q: Why did you choose to come to Eastern? 

A: “I have an agency to help me with paperwork and talking to coaches, and my two first years, I went to school in Florida. In my last semester, I was trying to find a school, but I didn’t like any of them. My coach told me, ‘Wait until you play nationals, do well at nationals, and you will get offers,’ and I did very well, I got to semifinals. Coach texted me and gave me an offer, and I felt like, “That’s it. I like it [here].” 

Q: What’s your favorite season? 

A: “I love spring because it’s our season for tennis, and I love it too because it’s my birthday.” 

Q: How do you feel like the season is going so far? 

A: “We started very strong, and now we are dealing with some injuries in the team, but conference is going to start this weekend, and we are very excited and ready for it.” 

Q: If you weren’t playing tennis, what sport would you play? 

A: “I think if I lived here in the U.S., I would like volleyball. I feel like it’s very similar to tennis. There’s a net, and you got to get the ball to the other side. I love watching volleyball, and it’s one of the few sports I don’t get bored watching. If I was living in Spain, I also like gymnastics, like rhythmic [gymnastics] because it’s very popular.” 

Q: Where’s the coolest place you’ve ever been? 

A: “I used to live in Florida, so I’ve been to Miami a lot. Miami’s a very cool place. I’ve been on holidays with my parents to Monaco. It’s so pretty, it’s out of this world.”

Q: Where’s your favorite place to study on campus? 

A: “Oh, the library.” 

Q: Apple juice or orange juice? 

A: “If it’s from the store, apple juice, but if it’s natural, orange juice.” 

Q: Who on the team would you give the aux to? 

A: “It would probably be Charleigh [Fay].” 

Q: Who’s the funniest person on the team? 

A: “So, we were talking about this the other day with the girls, and I said we are all funny in very different ways, so I wouldn’t be able to choose one.” 

Q: What’s been your favorite memory with the team? 

A: “I have so many, but one of my favorites is when we beat IUPUI, and we were 3-3, and I was the last match and I clinched, so we won 4-3. It was a win that we were waiting for so long because we lost against this team last season, and we finally beat them this semester.” 

Q: If you could have anything, what would be your postgame meal? 

A: “Sushi or Panda Express.” 

Q: What do you get from Panda Express? 

A: “Double orange chicken and noodles.”

Q: If you had the power to bring one celebrity to this campus, who would it be? 

A: “I would like to bring Pitbull. Everyone knows all of his songs and they are all so good, I have seen him [in] concert, and I think the show was a 10/10.” 

Q: What’s your favorite pregame meal? 

A: “Pasta for sure. I know it’s not the best for pregame, but I love buttered noodles.” 

Q: If you had a walkout song, what would it be? 

A: “In English, would be ‘4 Minutes’ by Madonna, and in Spanish probably ‘Trending’ by Myke Towers and Dei V or ‘Fiebre’ by Bad Gyal.” 

Q: How do you balance being a student and an athlete? 

A: “I have a planner where I write everything down: homework, matches, days off, exam, practices, trainer appointments. I wouldn’t be able to organize myself without it. I would forget everything.” 

Q: If you could have any tennis player as your doubles partner, who would it be? 

A: “Probably Aryna Sabalenka. She is my favorite tennis player at the moment, and she is so funny but also, she is a beast on court.” 

Q: Knowing everything you know now, what would you tell 10-year-old you? 

A: “I would tell her to keep practicing and give your 100 percent. Even if you don’t want to, keep practicing and do extra. Never give up.” 

Zaria Flippin can be reached at 581-2812 or at zhflippin@eiu.edu.