In the final set point of a qualifying match for the 2024 ITA Women’s All-American Championships, the crowd is silent as a serve is up in the air. A rally ensues as both sides try to keep the ball in their lines. With a final swing, a winner is named in the third set of the match.
An extreme sight to watch, but it is just another match for senior Pepperdine Women’s Tennis player, Savannah Broadus.
“I’ve never been one to look too much at rankings,” Broadus said. “I’m just a player that’s like, ‘I’m gonna go out and ideally kick butt.'”
Broadus is a three time All-American in doubles, an All-American in singles, the 2024 WCC Player of the Year and has recently fought for a title in the ITA Women’s All-American Championship in hopes of adding to her mile long list of achievements.
Broadus was raised in an athletic family as her mother, Sheila Broadus, was a tennis player at Texas Christian University and her father, Ron Broadus, was a football player at Prairie View A&M.
To begin her own historic tennis career, Broadus had a classic sibling rivalry with her brother, Grayson Broadus. Grayson played at Notre Dame from 2016-2020 and was a role model for Savannah in her junior training years.
“He showed me that you don’t have to be pulling these crazy shots out of nowhere,” Broadus said. “Being solid and being reliable is probably one of the biggest assets in college tennis.”
In Broadus’ younger training years, her family guided her journey into the sport until age 10. Around age 12, she began working with Dave Licker, director of Juniors at the Lakes Tennis Academy in Dallas.
“She was almost 15 years old and she made a pretty big breakthrough in her tennis,” Licker said. “That was kind of the turnaround where I was like, ‘Wow, this girl can really play.'”
This player and coach connection flourished as the two had known each other previously from a connection through Sheila Broadus.
“In so many ways, he helped me grow as a person and just become more mature,” Broadus said.
Today, Broadus still relies on Licker for advice and coaching even when she is looking for help off the court. She said he’s constantly reminding her that tennis is not the entire world, but rather a game to play.
“There are bigger things than tennis and when I don’t stress out too much about tennis I actually play a lot better,” Broadus said.
Licker was able to grow her into an elite juniors player before Pepperdine Women’s Tennis Head Coach Per Nilsson began recruiting her for her services at Pepperdine.
“I’ve known [Nilsson] for a long time and I thought it’d be a great place for her,” Licker said. “[I told her] that’s one of the places you should really consider.”
Nilsson came to a workout where Broadus was working with Licker and he jumped on the phone with her as soon as NCAA recruiting regulations allowed.
“It was one of the best phone calls I’ve ever had,” Broadus said. “He cared more about me as a person rather than just a tennis player and that meant a lot to me.”
In her freshman year, Broadus learned what was necessary to become a college tennis player in the weight room, classroom, tennis court and even the track.
“There’s a huge adjustment period for everybody coming into college,” Broadus said. “I haven’t met any freshman that hasn’t struggled. It’s just a part of it.”
Like many elite tennis juniors, Broadus took her high school years online to have time to train and travel to get recruited by schools like Pepperdine.
“I don’t know if I was more nervous for my first practice or my first in-person class in over four years,” Broadus said.
The adjustment took time as she said her first few months at Pepperdine were some of the hardest of her life. However, she had a partner beside her throughout the extremities of Division I sport, Pepperdine alumni Janice Tjen (’24).
Tjen was also adjusting to playing and training at the Pepperdine level after spending her freshman year at the University of Oregon. The pair worked together to get through every conditioning session, weight lift and extra early morning to get to the level they are at today.
“I went through so many hard days in the fall semester, and it paid off in the spring,” Broadus said. “I started to do really well.”
When they began to play together, the pair quickly clicked into sync. Broadus and Tjen said they just knew what the other was thinking without needing to communicate everything.
“We knew each other inside and out and it was almost like a dance on the court,” Broadus said.
In her three years at Pepperdine so far, Broadus has only played four doubles matches without Tjen by her side. In their first year together, they advanced to the semifinals of the 2022 NCAA Doubles Championship and would be nationally ranked every year until Tjen’s graduation in 2024.
“I mean, being her teammate, it was amazing,” Tjen said. “Whenever I run into trouble or I have something in my mind, she always knew before [I did].”
Tjen is now playing overseas professionally and is hoping to play with Broadus again once her time at Pepperdine is over.
“I mean, we want to play together on the pro tour,” Tjen said. “I think it would be amazing.”
Broadus’ freshman year was also a high-level individual year for her as she won WCC Freshman of the Year. Some of her 2021 accomplishments included being ranked No. 69 in singles, No. 15 in doubles and making the WCC first team in doubles and second team in singles according to Pepperdine Athletics.
“That winning feeling overrides and pushes you to be like I can get through this tough day,” Broadus said.
Overall, Broadus won 35 singles games and went 20-5 in doubles with Tjen for a .900 winning percentage and became second place in Pepperdine history for number of wins at the two position, according to Pepperdine Athletics. Broadus and Tjen were named an ITA All-American in doubles which she said is one of her proudest achievements to this day.
“At every school you have a list of All-Americans at the facilities and it’s really special to know that my name will be up there for the rest of time,” Broadus said.
Broadus’ sophomore year further built her reputation as she finished the season ranked No. 30 in singles and No. 1 in doubles with Tjen winning the 2022 ITA National Fall Doubles Championship Title. The same year, the duo was named All-Americans for the second time.
“I think the fall national title was our biggest title during our time in college,” Tjen said. “I think that would be the most meaningful one.”
Broadus swept the WCC conference 6-0 with a final record in singles play of 36-3. 10 of which were against ranked opponents, according to Pepperdine Athletics.
During her junior year she continued her journey in breaking records as she and Tjen became the first three-time ITA All-American doubles team in Pepperdine history, according to Pepperdine Athletics. The pair also competed in the 2024 NCAA National Final. They ended the season ranked No. 1 in doubles again and even won WCC Doubles Team of the Week seven times, according to Pepperdine Athletics.
“Winning the semifinal match, and playing for a national championship, that feeling was unmatched,” Broadus said. “That was one of the most surreal experiences I’ve ever had.”
In her singles game, Broadus was ranked No. 16 and was named an All-American for the first time in singles according to Pepperdine Athletics. On top of these notorieties, she was named the 2024 WCC Player of the Year.
“It meant a lot to me because in a way [it showed] that all my hard work I’ve done did pay off and people are recognizing that,” Broadus said. “It also pushes me because I want to get that award this year.”
Off the court, Broadus continues her All-American status in the classroom and in her representation as a student-athlete at Pepperdine.
Broadus has won multiple academic awards including WCC All-Academic Honorable Mention in 2023 and 2024 and Pepperdine Scholar-Athlete in 2022 and 2023.
Broadus has also been a part of Waves Leadership Council for three years. The WLC is a student athlete advocate group that works to advocate for student athletes and create a better environment for them to thrive at Pepperdine.
“It really helped me work on my communication skills and know that everyone is different in how they respond to things,” Broadus said.
She then became a group leader for the Community Service Group her junior year and the Mental Health Group her senior year.
This year, Broadus has started off strong at the ITA Singles National Championship and is looking to extend herself even further to leave her legacy at Pepperdine. One of her main goals is to repeat WCC Player of the Year, while also teaching the next generation of Pepperdine Tennis what it means to be a Wave.
“I am a leader and I really appreciate the role because the leaders that I’ve had have helped me so much and I want to do the same for those girls,” Broadus said.
After her last year, Broadus aspires to be a professional tennis athlete.
“I’ve seen some of my friends are doing really well on tour right now, and it motivates me to push really hard this season,” Broadus said. “When I do finish college the plan is to play professionally.”
Even with a professional career on the horizon, Broadus is still excelling in her collegiate career. She recently qualified for NCAA Singles Championship and will be playing in Waco, Texas on Nov. 19-24.
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Email Megan Harkey: megan.harkey@pepperdine.edu
