Nguyen: For Remy Nguyen, Signing Day to DU Pioneers tennis is culmination of community effort

I worked the prep sports beat early on in my career at The Denver Post. As a journalist, I never cheered for the teams I covered but sometimes you can’t help but root for certain individuals.

This one I especially root for.

Surrounded by more than 70 friends, family, former coaches and community members on Tuesday, senior Remy Nguyen signed her national letter of intent to play for the University of Denver women’s tennis team at the Denver Tennis Park. With a portrait from 2011 of her and her family hanging on the wall in a longstanding “Breaking the Barriers” photo exhibit next to the table set up for the ceremony, it seemed like destiny for her to end up at DU.

“It’s a little overwhelming, I’m not going to lie,” she said about the turnout.

If it sounds like I’m gushing, I absolutely am. Remy is my niece. And I could not be more proud after she became the first-ever Division I athlete in our family.

Playing for Chaparral High School, the 17-year-old qualified for the Class 5A state tournament at No. 1 singles three times. And she compiled a 53-9 record while doing it, according to MaxPreps.

“Her first 15 matches (in 2024), she played 193 games. Out of those 193 games played, she won 180,” Chaparral head coach Dan Padrnos said. “… She goes on and is 20-0 on the season to get to the championship match.”

She finished runner-up to a longtime friend, Valor Christian’s Caroline Daugherty, in the finals, and earned a spot on CHSAA’s all-state first team. A three-star recruit and one of the top 10 mountain region players in her class, according to tennisrecruiting.net, she’s the first Colorado player to join the DU program since Steamboat Springs’ Tatum Burger in 2019.

“Her racket skills, her attitude and the effort and coachability — that is everything we look for in a player. Effort and attitude are everything. … We’ve watched her over the years and know that she has everything to be a success at D-I tennis,” DU assistant coach Maureen Kechriotis said.

National Signing Day has always been one of my favorite events to cover. It’s a celebration of hard work, dedication and sacrifice. Not just from the athletes, but their families. The travel, the practice — it becomes a family affair. I can’t tell you how many times my brother Tod and his wife, Vie, changed their lives around to travel with Remy to a tournament several states away.

So often, that is the story of Signing Day all across the country.

“They’ve done so much, it’s actually crazy,” Remy said about her parents. “Practices, training, I mean, individual training, group training, scheduling, practice matches, scheduling tournaments, outside tournaments, out-of-state tournaments, high school tennis — like every single thing is just a ton of work. It’s just crazy the amount of stuff they’ve done for me.”

Several of her coaches shared fond memories during the event, from her prowess on the court to an eagerness to learn to helping teammates improve. High praise about the strong values held by those who helped shape who she is today.

Longtime family friend and Remy’s mental coach Brad Bernthal said it best: “No one goes it alone. To have your coaches here, your parents, family and friends, we are all so excited for you. But it’s also a celebration of each other. People like this don’t fall out of the sky. It’s a product of a community. …

“Remy, just know that we’re all here rooting for you and your success is reflected in all of us. We’re excited by what you have done and it gets us excited for where things are going.”

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