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Naomi Karki started to feel sick once she returned home to New Jersey after a trip to India during the summer before sixth grade. She was dizzy, fatigued and her temperature continued to steadily rise.

Four-Star Naomi Karki Has Signed with Rutgers
© Contributed Photo

Karki spent a week in the hospital as doctors tried to figure out what was wrong. She was eventually diagnosed with typhoid fever, a life-threatening infection caused by the bacterium Salmonella Typhi. It is usually spread through contaminated food or water.

During the healing process, Karki couldn’t get out of bed for weeks. She missed playing tennis and running around with friends.

“It was a complete reset for me. I think it changed my perspective about sports and having the opportunity to play,” she said. “Once I got better, I was so grateful and fortunate to be able to just practice. I really got a lot better after that year and my ranking jumped and I got into the big summer supernational tournaments.”

The four-star senior from East Brunswick took the next big step in her career by signing to play at Rutgers. Although the campus is only 20 minutes from home, it wasn’t the determining factor in Karki joining the program.

“It really came down to how welcoming Coach Hilary (Ritchie) was throughout the process,” Karki said. “I felt like what she wanted for us is whatever we wanted for ourselves. To me, that said a lot. Everyone has their individual goals and aspirations and I think the fact that she is so dedicated to us individually was really big.”