Justin Balas


Senior, American literature

Designated a nonscholarship campus in intercol- legiate sports, UC Santa Cruz attracts athletes to its NCAA teams who excel at more than sports. "Athletes here have to perform in the classroom like any other student," says Justin Balas, a member of UCSC's nationally ranked tennis team.

Balas, who expects to graduate this spring, wouldn't have it any other way. "What I've learned at UCSC as a student-athlete will make a huge difference in the person that I become."

An American literature major, Balas is learning balance--and not just the kind that produces well-timed ground strokes on the tennis court. While carrying a full load of courses, he has emerged as one of the top players on a UCSC team with a glorious tradition: national championships in 1989, 1995, and 1996.

Most students at UCSC have plenty of demands on their time, juggling classes, labs, and homework. As a student-athlete, Balas must also shoehorn in four hours of practice each weekday and tournaments on weekends.

To help him succeed as both student and player, Balas relies on a small black notebook, a personal journal that contains not only the smallest details of his life, but his largest dreams as well.

Turning to a particularly well-worn page, Balas recites his top two off-court goals: excelling in the classroom and graduating on time. A separate page lists his tennis goals, which begin with the dream he shares with his teammates: to bring a fourth national championship back to UCSC this spring.

A Boston native, Balas began his collegiate career at the University of Massachusetts, the beneficiary of a four-year tennis scholarship. Unfulfilled by the caliber of the tennis there, Balas relinquished his scholarship after his sophomore year and began looking at other schools.

"A coach of mine back east suggested that I take a look at Bob Hansen's program at UCSC," he says. Balas liked what he saw: UC-quality scholastics to prepare him for a career in law or teaching and a grade-A tennis program.

Working with Coach Hansen has made a believer of Balas. His tennis has never been better, and he'll graduate this spring fully prepared--academically and organizationally--for the fast-paced world that awaits him.

"There are not too many pro- grams you can walk into where the expectation is a national championship," Balas says. "I like it that way. The success I'm experiencing in tennis here is showing up in my schoolwork. And it's made a big difference in how I think about what I can accomplish as a person."

--Jim Burns


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