North Texas tennis player looking at new opportunity after senior year is cut short

North Texas athlete's senior year cut short

With spring sports cut short, some college seniors are left to decide whether to stay or move on with life. FOX 4's Ashley Paredez shares the story of a young athlete from North Texas.

PLANO, Texas - Many college athletes in their senior year are in limbo with the coronavirus pandemic affecting the spring sports season. Now they are having to make some tough decisions.

Oberg plays collegiate tennis for the University of Portland. This is her senior year so she wanted to finish the season off strong. But instead, it was cut short and she’s back home in Plano.

On the weekend of what was supposed to be her team’s conference home opener, her mom surprised her by putting up a net so they could have a little match in the backyard.

Oberg is remaining positive although devastated about the season being canceled.

She said what hurts the most is knowing that this was her team’s most promising year.

The NCAA did grant an additional season of eligibility to spring sport athletes. It was something Oberg considered but she knew many things were still up in the air including scholarships and whether the school could retain a larger roster.

Ultimately her decision was made easier when she got some exciting news.

“Two hours before I found out the news that my season was getting canceled, I got an email that I had been selected to be the first graduate assistant for video production at my university. The same day, I received some of the most exciting news of my life about my future career and my tennis career ending,” she said.

Oberg has dome sports features in the past and hopes to continue doing that while a graduate assistant so she can still cover tennis.

Her undergraduate degree is in operations and technology management. She hopes to get a master’s degree in that as well.

In the meantime, she will continue playing backyard tennis.