California University of Pennsylvania Athletics

Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland and California, Pennsylvania, are all places Helena Van Eysendeyk has called home, and that's just fine for the fourth women's tennis player in school history to earn Cal U Athletic Hall of Fame honors.

Through favorable and informative emails with former women's tennis head coach Pablo Montana, Van Eysendeyk came to Cal U from overseas and helped the Vulcans win the first three of an unprecedented 10-straight PSAC Championships from 2007-16.

As a freshman, she helped Cal U compile a 28-2 overall record and win its first PSAC Championship since 1993. Van Eysendeyk compiled a 30-2 overall singles record and 29-2 doubles record as Cal U reached the national quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament.

In 2007-08, Van Eysendeyk posted a 36-3 singles record and 33-3 doubles mark as the Vulcans repeated as conference champions, returned to the national quarterfinals and were ranked No. 5 in the final ITA national poll. Her doubles partner that season was Inga Chilingaryan Babakhanyan ´06, ´07, ´08, a 2018 Cal U Athletic Hall of Fame inductee.

Van Eysendeyk led the Vulcans to a 23-3 overall record her senior season with another PSAC Championship and appearance in the national quarterfinals.

She compiled a 26-2 overall record in singles competition in 2008-09 to finish with a 92-7 singles career mark. Her doubles career record following a 30-6 senior season was 92-11.

Her career singles wins and winning percentage (.929) remain school records as does her doubles winning percentage (.893) while her doubles career wins rank third.

During her three seasons with the Vulcans, Van Eysendeyk helped the program compile a 77-8 cumulative record, which included three trips to the national quarterfinals.

She earned her bachelor's degree in international studies from Cal U in 2007 and her master's degree in business administration in 2009. 

"If I had to do it again, I wouldn't hesitate a minute," Van Eysendeyk said about coming to Cal U. "I left there with two degrees, a better level of English, experiences and great memories. 

"When I came back to Europe looking for a start in my career, I could basically do whatever I wanted because Cal U gave me a brilliant resumé." 

She understandably praised Montana, who is now the men's tennis head coach at NCAA Division I Delaware University.

"He is a great coach, a mix of passion and humanity who cared about our well-being as players, students and people," she said. "When we first emailed and then spoke, he told me exactly what he expected from me and what I would have to give back in return.

"It was all clear to me that the school and the tennis program were exactly what I was looking for."

Montana said Van Eysendeyk was an integral part of the tennis program's emergence as a perennial power and it was almost a guaranteed point for Cal U when she was in the lineup. 

"Through her hard work and by example she made each of her teammates better and was one of the few women's tennis players who had every game style at her disposal," Montana recalled. "She could serve and volley on a big point, she could chip off a break point and she could grind you out from the baseline if she needed to. That is one of the many reasons why she was one of the best college tennis players in the nation."

Van Eysendeyk and Babakhanyan join Monica DiNatale-Bach ´94 (2002) and multi-sport star Margaret Wilkinson-Neill ´32 (1996), as the only women's tennis Hall of Fame honorees.

"Inga and I had different styles, but were a tremendous doubles team," Van Eysendeyk said. "She is a great person and a great friend. I am honored to join her in the Hall of Fame and I hope more and more women's tennis players get this honor. 

"I am very excited to come back to Cal and see all the changes. I am a bit nervous that I will not recognize everyone but I am sure seeing faces will make memories come back." 

Born in Leuven, Belgium, Van Eysendeyk grew up in several different towns in France, Germany, and Switzerland. 

She graduated with an International Baccalaureate from Zurich (Switzerland) International School in 2003 where she excelled in five different sports. At Zurich, she was a three-time International School Sports Tournament (ISST) tennis singles champion and starter on the two-time ISST champion soccer team. 

Before coming to Cal U, she earned a degree in tourism from the University of Montpellier in France. 

Van Eysendeyk resides in Poisy, France, where she is in a civil partnership with Marine Choquard. After several years working for prominent banks and insurance companies, she is an air traffic controller for Skyguide, an air navigation service provider. Van Eysendeyk also still plays competitively with the Pringy Tennis Club. 

"Helena was always an amazing student and it's of no surprise to me that her commitment and effort in the classroom has carried over to her success in the work world," Montana added. "I'm so proud of her accomplishments and she truly represents everything a student-athlete should be."

While she left the business world, Van Eysendeyk credits Cal U for giving her an array of professional possibilities.

"I realized that business didn't really fit my personality, but my education at Cal U allowed me to have all doors open for my professional career," she said. "Cal U gives me safety because every day I know I have, am prepared, and can do many professional options."


updated 06/05/19