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Nikhil Ramani (WTN: 21.7) had a reliable inside source to let him know what it was like to be a tennis player at Case Western University.

His older sister, Shreya, attended the school and played for the women’s team from 2019-23 while majoring in biomedical engineering.

Ramani decided to extend the family legacy at the Ohio-based institution. The four-star senior from Fremont, California has committed to Case Western.

Ramani was already familiar with the campus and has known men’s head coach Todd Wojtkowski for the last six years because of his sister’s presence at the school.

“He is very passionate. I know that he's really serious and he really cares about the team. He wants to win a national title,” Ramani said. “It was kind of just a no-brainer to commit there, because it's perfect for me.”

Ramani considered several NCAA Division III schools with strong engineering reputations during his recruiting process. His sister’s insight helped him accumulate information about CWU to weigh against others.

“She gave her perspective, because she also has seen the coach work with the team. She was like, ‘he's very aggressive and he's hard on the team, but he does it because he cares,” Ramani said. “And she also did engineering there, so she knew it was a good education, and gives you some good opportunities.”

Ramani’s interest in engineering was sparked at a young age.

“I used to watch this show about how planes crash, and I guess that got me really interested in aerospace engineering and aeronautical stuff,” he said. “From there, I decided to go into mechanical engineering, just because that's more broad.”

Ramani grew up in Northern California, and started playing tennis at age 5. Although Ramani participated in basketball, soccer and swimming, tennis was always his favorite sport.

“I've always known that I want to play tennis in college,” said Ramani, who does hybrid schooling. “Everyone just wants to go pro, but I knew that was really tough. I knew that I always wanted to play in college and do well in college, so that was mainly my goal.”

Ramani has been playing a musical instrument since the fourth grade. He’s played the alto saxophone, tenor saxophone and the bass clarinet. Ramani couldn’t join the school’s marching band because he’s not considered a full-time student and their practices interrupted his tennis schedule.

“But I'm in an outside band or outside orchestra, and I play bass clarinet,” he said. “We meet once a week and rehearse, and then we perform in concerts three times a year. I'm still pretty interested in that.”

Music has provided Ramani with a healthy outlet from school and tennis.

“It’s relaxing to me,” he said. “Every day is busy, and then I can go to orchestra and I can unwind there. I can just play my instrument and I don't worry about anything else. It's not super serious. I am not at music practice every single day, but I still get the experience.”

Ramani’s interest in transportation goes beyond just planes and aeronautics. He’s also a car enthusiast. His family recently bought a new vehicle and he was the one who did all the research, found the car and communicated with the dealer.

“Whenever I see a car on the road, I'm like, ‘oh, it's so and so,’” Ramani said. “My friends are like, ‘how do you know that? It’s just some random symbols. How do you tell just by the headlights or the logo it's this car? That's so weird.’ But I just know.”

Ramani has been driving his family’s Honda Odyssey, but his dream car is a Rimac Nevera.

“That’s a couple million (dollars), so that's far away in the future,” he said with a laugh.

Ramani’s more immediate future includes preparing to excel at Case Western now that his college decision has been made.

“It feels pretty good. It definitely feels like some stress has been taken off my shoulders” Ramani said. “But I still have to keep up the grind and just keep getting better for college. I have to keep playing some tournaments and keep my level up so I can be ready once I arrive in college.”

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About Rhiannon Potkey

Rhiannon Potkey is a veteran sportswriter with more than two decades of experience in journalism. Potkey has covered many sports at many levels and has a passion for finding great stories. Potkey has covered the U.S. Open, junior sectional and national events, college conference championships and Davis Cup matches. Potkey is currently Content Strategist for Tennis Recruiting. You can reach Rhiannon by email at [email protected].