Featured Senior: Alyssa Oberg

What was your most memorable moment throughout your career at Willamette?

Winning against Pacific 8-0 in doubles with Sarah Dean while I was on crutches.

Describe your feelings when you found out the season was canceled.

Disappointed, and very sad. I felt cheated out of a real end to my college tennis career and I was looking forward to bonding with the team, especially the first-years.

How have you been handling life in quarantine? Are you home or on campus? What's it like learning online and not having practice?

I have been doing my best to focus on school work and graduating, but also doing a lot of crafting such as knitting and painting. I live off campus with several other Willamette students that aren't athletes. It's been really weird not having practice or really any set schedule. Tennis was something that helped provide a structure to my life, and in combination with not really having any real class schedule, it has been hard to make myself work.

What has your experience as a Bearcat taught you?

That we are all going through similar things and that you have a community that will support you when you need it.

If you could leave one piece of advice for future Bearcats, what would it be?

Be kind whenever you can and value your time with your team and at Willamette. It goes by really fast and you will miss it when you're done.

What are your future plans following graduation?

There are a few options. I'm either going into the data science program Willamette is offering, working for City Year, or working at a biotech company.

From their teammates

What was your most memorable moment of Alyssa?

Sylvia Marr: When she dropped her yarn and it rolled all the way down the hill during our spring break trip! And when I got a terrible sunburn on the same trip and she was very generous with her aloe vera.

How has Alyssa impacted you in your sport or in life?

Sarah Dean: Alyssa has always been a go-to for advice, whether it's a WITS wifi-related question or boy drama, her level-headed personality has always made me feel comfortable confiding in her.

Sylvia Marr: Alyssa is always such a positive force on the team. You never heard a negative thing from her, even when the team didn't do very well or we all had a rough practice. She brought a wonderful spirit and energy to the team that will be greatly missed.

What makes Alyssa special?

Sarah Dean: Alyssa is a quiet, yet powerful leader both on the court and as a person. She definitely is a person and player who embodies the saying of "actions speak louder than words."

Sylvia Marr: Besides her amazing hair dye abilities, Alyssa's positive attitude and strong work ethic make her special. It is incredible how much she improved over the years that I was on the team with her, and it is clear that she really worked hard in practice and in workouts to improve her game and her athleticism. She was an invaluable asset to our team!

Is there anything Alyssa brought to the program that will have a lasting impact?

Sarah Dean: Her loud "Let's go Willamette" cheers

Sylvia Marr: I hope that we can continue Alyssa's legacy of always having fun and making the best out of tough situations.