CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea – Chloe Lee could not have topped her 2024 tennis season in any way.

Lee won the Far East tennis tournament Division I and overall singles title and helped lead Humphreys to the D-I team crown. She also earned a truly rare honor for a DODEA-Pacific player – the Korean-American Interscholastic Activities Conference tournament singles title.

So, what can Lee wish as an encore?

“That I can do it again,” Lee said in an interview at Humphreys High School, prior to Tuesday’s practice.

After stepping off the court following the KAIAC tournament victory, Lee said she celebrated her championship some, but added that she knew “that I would have to live up to that” in the 2025 season.

Living up to that will come with a caveat. In 2024, she was a relative unknown, having not played in the 2023 Far East despite cobbling together an unbeaten regular season.

But this time around, Lee acknowledges that she’ll be wearing a bull’s-eye with the words Defending Far East Champion on it.

“Of course, there’s pressure,” Lee said of trying to duplicate what she accomplished last fall.

Just within DODEA-Korea, there are girls players at Osan and Daegu who are making progress, let alone what’s out there on Okinawa and in Japan.

“I would need to work harder at Far East,” Lee said. “There will be good players and they’re working just as hard.”

DODEA-Korea’s season opened with a three-way jamboree last Saturday at Osan. The Cougars, Warriors and Blackhawks will get together again Saturday at Humphreys.

Unfortunately at this point, it appears DODEA-Korea’s teams won’t play in the KAIAC postseason tournament scheduled for Nov. 1. Far East will be played two weeks before. DODEA and KAIAC leadership are still discussing the matter. No word has been made available on progress.

Tennis

On Lee’s Blackhawks team, fellow senior Rebecca Kruelski returns. And Skylar Park joins the roster, a freshman who is not new to the game. On the boys side, Nathan Hwang, a junior, shared the Far East mixed doubles crown and “has improved a ton,” coach Marco Valdez said.

“The whole team has really improved,” Valdez said. “They’ve really been working hard.”

And he also has something to defend. “Now, it’s Round 2. Going into the lions’ den,” Valdez said of trying to repeat the Far East title Oct. 15-18 at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. “No. 2 is when tradition is made.”

Senior Chris Eun returns for the Cougars along with sophomores Ethan Kim and Noah Hong on the boys side. Junior Grace Kim returns for the girls, while Gavriella Duran, a junior, moves in from Yokota.

“I definitely miss Yokota, but I’m enjoying it here,” Duran said.

“We have some new people, athletic and eager,” said new Cougars coach Jeewon Kim.

Daegu has a mix of veterans and first-timers, but coach Don Park said he’s most excited about his No. 2 boys doubles pair of sophomores Daemyn Taylor and GD Choi. “I have really high hopes,” he said.

Last season’s girls doubles pair of senior Irene Won and sophomore Gina Kim are now playing singles, while seniors Evan Son and Max Inwoo Lim return as the boys top two singles. One first-year player, junior Jude Velazquez, also plays basketball.

Girls volleyball

The Warriors took something of a pounding in the 2024 regular season and Far East Division II, but coach Susan Oltmer says she’s hopeful that those days are over. Daegu will play in KAIAC’s third-tier White Division this season.

Senior Denali Clites and sophomore Aneya Aldan return at outside hitter, senior Abigail Cook returns to man the middle and Ta’niyah Peterson, a sophomore, is setting again. They’re joined by sophomore outside Mila Buettner and senior libero Olivia Buettner.

“They know the expectations,” Oltmer said. “The goal is to get out there and be competitive this season.”

Humphreys, which plays in KAIAC’s top-tier Blue Division, also fields plenty of experience: Six seniors are on the roster, including outside hitter Evelyn Kim. Junior Caedence Blair also lines up outside, while junior Joselyn Sanchez is back at libero.

“We have lots of returners with varsity experience,” said Emily McCormick, who coached at the old Seoul American High School. “We’re contending. We’re pretty solid.”

The same is not true with Osan, of KAIAC’s Red Division, which finished second in the Far East D-II tournament last fall.

Only two players return, junior outside hitters Riley Clawson and Tiffany Pak. New to the team are freshman Ellie Helphinstine and sophomore Starlene Grace.

“We’re rebuilding,” Cougars coach Deneshia Gray said. “We’re a new squad, but we have high expectations.”

Boys volleyball

Each of the DODEA-Korea teams have a small core of veterans but are fairly green across the board.

Though Osan only has four seniors, Aidan Machmer, John Krabbe and twins Dax and Davis Parsons, the Cougars do have 17 players out and are fielding both a varsity and junior varsity, coach Michael Paul said.

Llance Ramos leads a group of three Humphreys seniors; he plays outside, Troy Ramboy lines up at libero and William Rah plays setter. “Aside from the three seniors, everybody is in their first season of volleyball,” Ramos said of a group that features five sophomores and five juniors.

Only four players return for the Warriors, but among the newcomers, there’s plenty of potential, coach Jeramie Lentz said.

Junior Jaiden Williams is back in the middle and outside and sophomore Alex Cruz lines up at setter. Junior Jaxon O’Conner is new to volleyball but is “tall and has a wingspan,” Lentz said. Senior Xavier Brown comes over from basketball and will play outside.

Cross country

One team whose numbers have grown is Daegu, which has had as many as 25 runners out. New coach Kathryn Brashears is hopeful that they’ll complete the season with 20, with a full boys team and an almost-full girls team.

Senior McKenzie Andrews, a 400-meter track sprinter, returns. Brashears calls him a “strong runner and a good kid. Always positive.”

Junior Teddy Noll joins the lineup, as does freshman Kamiya Lewis, one of several youngsters who are showing promise. “Hopefully, it can translate to distance,” Brashears said.

Humphreys must get along without record-setting junior Cassandra Jarzabek, who has moved to SHAPE in Belgium. But other girls have moved up in the lineup and the Blackhawks return a strong boys contingent.

Seniors Hailey Mitchell and Kaylee Porter are back along with junior Annelise Parker. Sophomores Ammon Allen and Asher Auna bolster a boys lineup that welcomes back junior Joey Brown, who shared the Far East team relay title with Jarzabek last October.

“We have the personnel to do well this season,” said Brown, who ran Far East track distance events last May with an injured hip. “I thank my coaches, I thank my teammates for getting me back into position.”

Osan welcomes back senior Emily Smith and sophomore Branden Ferguson to the lineup, but the rest are young.