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Vanessa, Nicole and Stephanie Schon, the three newest additions to the women's tennis team, are not identical triplets, but they do share a passion for tennis and a habit of finishing one another's sentences.

"Everybody always asks us if we can read each others minds," Nicole said. "We are triplets, but we're completely different people. We do finish each other sentences a lot."

The 18-year-old sisters are natives of La Jolla, Calif., and they spent two years at the International Tennis Academy in Boca Raton, Fla., before their move to Asheville.

The freshmen were recruited by Head Coach Lise Gregory last fall.

They finished their senior year of high school in one semester, which allowed them to come to UNCA in January.

"The critical factor was that they were able to graduate from high school early, since we only had four returning players on the team at that point, and you need six players to compete in a dual match," Gregory said.

Gregory said she found out about the triplets through her old coach at the University of Miami.

"Actually, the girls' father initially contacted me. He was a teammate of Ian Duvenhage, who was my coach at Miami and also attended the University of Miami," Gregory said. "He contacted Ian to ask his advice on universities, and Ian recommended UNC Asheville."

Gregory said she checked into the triplets' results, realized they could help the team and brought them up to Asheville for a visit.

"They have definitely contributed to the team in a big way already, and I believe they will continue to do so," Gregory said. "We now have a lot of depth in our lineup and I feel confident in every position."

Vanessa, the oldest of the three, recently recovered from a stress fracture in her foot. She has not played in any matches since the season started.

Gregory said Vanessa will play once she regains the confidence.

"She is physically fine, but tennis is such a complex sport that if you take time off it requires a fair amount of work to return to your previous form," Gregory said.

Each of the sisters has their own style on the court, as well as different personalities that set them apart from one another, according to Gregory.

"They look different, they have very different personalities and they have completely different styles of playing tennis," Gregory said. "Nicci's strength is her athleticism, Vanessa's strength is her work ethic and Stephie's strength is her competitiveness."

Stephanie, the youngest, said her favorite aspect of tennis is the competition, one reason tennis pro Martina Hingis is one of her heroes.

"I really look up to Martina Hingis, because I feel that my game is a lot like hers," Stephanie said. "I like the way she competes."

Nicole looks up to several professional players.

"I personally like Ana Ivanovic for women's and Rafael Nadal for the men's," Nicole said. "And Federer, of course."

All three sisters said their father, Benito Schon, is a personal influence on their tennis.

"Our dad is the one who got us into tennis. He played professionally and coached us our whole lives, so he is our main inspiration," Vanessa said.

The sisters said they lived without their parents while they attended they the International Tennis Academy, though they now see their mother once a month, and saw their father, who lives in Mexico, last month.

Nicole and Stephanie played doubles together in their first two matches, though the lineup could change, according to Gregory.

"It was tough to figure out doubles teams in the 10 days we had to practice before our first match, so I went with teams who had played together in the past," she said.

The two took their first doubles match 8-1 against N.C. A&T on Saturday, Jan. 27. They finished 8-5 against Lees-McRae a week later.

"Vanessa, Stephie and Nicci have done great so far," Gregory said. "It is never easy to join a team mid year, but they had adjusted quite well and have already contributed significantly. I am impressed by their maturity and level headedness."

Nicole and Stephanie are unsure about majors, but Vanessa wants to attend medical school, according to her sisters.

Stephanie said she wants to go pro after college, and Nicole said professional play is a possibility.

"It's an idea. I'll see how it goes in college tennis," she said. "I'll still be pretty young. Maybe I'll try a couple of years out pro."

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