You are the sixth-best women's tennis player in the nation.

You have a 34-5 singles record, a perfect 13-0 record in dual-match play, you have beaten the defending national champion, and so far this year have captured two major tournaments with a runner-up finish at another.

You also have an interview, and you schedule it before your lesson.

Your lesson?

Yes, All-American sophomore Vicky Maes still gets help on her game.

"I think she has the lessons because she needs to feel like she has worked hard and is prepared. We work on very specific things in her lessons," UA assistant coach Stephanie London said.

Vicky Frans-Yvonne Maes will turn 22 on Thursday, 18 years from when she received her first tennis racket.

Her father, Hubert Maes € who still lives in Maes' hometown of Hamme, Belgium € took a full-sized racket, sawed off half the shaft and fitted it with a new grip.

"I used it to swing at tennis balls a little, but usually I just used it to hit my brother with," Maes said.

Maes' parents played for recreation, but her brother Ben excelled at tennis. Maes lived less than a mile from the tennis center, and she would go there regularly to watch her brother and to play with the children of her parent's friends.

Maes loved to watch her brother play and entered her first tournament at the age 7. She won that tournament and watched her brother win his too. She knew from then that she loved the game.

Maes doesn't consider herself a natural, but rather a student that has progressed because of how hard she has worked at it.

"I'm still trying to get better. I know that I can," Maes said.

Maes was the doubles champion of Belgium in the 14-, 16- and 18-year-old age groups as well as singles champion in the 18-year-old group.

Maes began playing in tournaments after high school, and while she was in a tournament in South America, she had a conversation with former UA tennis player Alix Creek about playing in the states. "I told her (Creek) that I was interested," Maes said.

When Maes returned home, her dad told her Arizona head coach Becky Bell had already called.

She was 21 years old, and had only visited the states for a week before she moved to the university in August of 1994. She was taking 18 units in the field of business and playing No. 1 for the team.

"I had a tough time playing my matches because I didn't know anybody, and I didn't know what college tennis was like," Maes said.

She struggled through the season but finished the year 20-18 and was seeded at the NCAA Championships.

Her seeding qualified her for an automatic All-American designation.

"I got seeded at Nationals, and at that time I didn't think that I deserved it, but I almost made it to the quarterfinals. I lost really close to the No. 1 ranked girl in three sets," Maes said. "I just played my best tennis in nationals last year. I realized that I should play like that every match."

This year Maes has been literally perfect, undefeated in Pacific 10 Conference play. Halfway through the season, Maes is playing what she calls her best tennis to date.

"I want to win nationals this year, I know that I can do it," Maes said. "But if I don't, then I have two more years."

Maes has no plans of leaving UA before she graduates with a degree in international business. Maes wants to be part of the second national championship under Bell. Bell's first was the 1993 doubles team of Creek and Michell Oldham.

"She has given me a lot of confidence, even last year when I wasn't doing that good. She always believed in me, and her believing in me has got me to believe in myself," said Maes about the impact of Bell.

"Vicky has worked harder than anybody that I have ever coached. She deserves everything that she has done," Bell said.

Nationals don't begin for another two months, but Maes is determined.

"If I win nationals, it would be my way of repaying the university," Maes said.