Elysia Salon has never been to the moon, nor has a desire to work for NASA.
However, the senior standout has been an expert at firing off rockets during her time at Woodrow Wilson.
Salon’s missiles are not launched into space. Instead, her big blasts have come on the volleyball and tennis courts while wearing the maroon and white.
“With Elysia, you are going to get somebody that is going to be competitive. She wears these guys out,” Woodrow Wilson tennis coach Bernie Bostick said. “She looks like she is nice, and don’t get me wrong, she is, but out there on the court, you don’t want to make her mad. It can get ugly.”
After leading Woodrow Wilson to a regional volleyball title in the fall, Salon is back in the state tennis tournament for the third time in four seasons.
The only year she missed the big dance was in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic that cancelled spring sports her sophomore season.
“Coming into this season, I have had a more relaxed viewpoint. It is my senior year and I wanted to have fun, enjoy the time I get to spend with it and go out with a bang,” Salon said. “Coming back to Charleston, I will play my opponents and see how its goes. Just take it play by play.”
The success for Salon on the tennis court is even more amazing when you consider she is not a year-round player and most, if not all of her top opponents, play all year.
Salon splits her tennis time with volleyball.
“I started really young playing tennis, maybe six or seven, playing with my sisters and my dad,” Salon explained. “I think once I hit third grade though, I stopped playing because I focused my time more on volleyball. That was when you could start playing volleyball in grade school.”
She not only played volleyball, she excelled in volleyball as an explosive outside hitter and solid back row player for the Flying Eagles.
After playing for the highly successful Club Attack 18U AAU team that won the Sapphire Bracket at the 18-U national tournament in Orlando, Salon carried that momentum over to the high school court.
Salon helped lead Woodrow Wilson back to the volleyball state tournament by recording over 600 kills, 486 digs and served 57 aces.
She was also named to the Class AAA all-state first team.
Although the time spent on the volleyball court may have limited Salon’s time on the tennis courts, she still feels volleyball has helped her tennis game immensely.
“Volleyball has helped me on the mental side. You have to have a good mindset in volleyball,” Salon said. “The mechanics of volleyball helps too with the swing, overhead serves, volleys, reflexes, footwork and athleticism.”
After being away from tennis during the grade school days, Salon resumed playing as she approached her middle school years.
“My dad had a team at St. Francis and although I didn’t play, I played some with them. I also played a few tournaments” Salon said. “I started taking it a little more seriously and once I got into high school, I definitely took it more seriously.”
While many across the state did not know Salon as a freshman, she was poised to be a star having two older sisters that were also regional tennis champions.
“She has been a special player, but so has the whole family. When you get a Salon, you get the dad who has played forever. You get the mom who is the ultimate team mom and has been that way for six years. She has really helped us,” Bostick said. “Dr. Salon plays and hits with them, so he keeps them sharp and pushes them as well. They all have been great, but Elysia is probably the culmination of it.”
Salon agreed that her family’s influence has been a huge factor in her success.
“When they started, I just joined in with them which gave me more time. I learned from their mistakes, from my dad’s mistakes and from lessons,” Salon said. “Everything that they learned was passed down to me, so they have definitely helped a lot.”
As a freshman, Salon played No. 4 singles where only the four regional champions across the state make the state tournament.
Salon won the Region 3 title and and finished runner-up at the state tournament. Coming from the highly emotional world of volleyball, Salon also got an eye-opener in regards to tennis.
“I think I went into the state tournament that year very calm. I am not sure I knew what I was getting in to. My first match was against Cabell Midland and the crowd was crazy,” Salon said. “It went to a tiebreaker and the crowd was screaming. It was very intense. I was shocked. I didn’t know tennis was like that.”
“When she finished runner-up at No. 4, that wasn’t a fluke. She has a legacy to live up too and she has,” Bostick said. “They talk trash to each other. If you don’t perform or get beat out early, she is going to hear about it until she does better.”
As a junior, Salon moved up to play No. 1 singles and advanced to the final four out of 16 players before falling to the eventual state champion.
As a result of winning the Region 3 title at No. 1 singles this year, Salon enters the state tournament as one of the top four seeds.
“She can play any game that somebody wants to play with her. If somebody want to stay and go baseline all day, she can do that and beat them,” Bostick said. “If they want to lob a ball, she will beat them at that. If they come to the net, that will be a mistake. She hits that ball about 90 miles per hour sometimes. She knows enough and played enough that she can set up a point.”
Salon also qualified for No. 1 seed doubles with freshman sensation Abby Dillon. Dillon was also a prolific setter on the volleyball team.
“It is always fun playing with a former teammate and that happened last year too. We both seem to have the same mindset coming from volleyball,” Salon said. “Move your feet, hustle plays and her reflexes are very nice. She always gets the ball back. It gives me an opportunity to place it. It is so much fun playing with her.”
The state tournament will be bittersweet for Salon as it will bring an end to a stellar high school career for one of Woodrow Wilson’s best athletes.
“Every once in a while, I will be thinking about it. I feel like I am processing it very slowly,” Salon said. “The way I see it is, I have spent four years here and I have had a lot of fun. I made a lot of friends and made a lot of memories. I think it is time for the next chapter.”