She was a quarterfinalist in the state 4-A singles competition after completing an undefeated regular season as No. 1 seed for the also undefeated Green Hope girls tennis team.

With three years of high school still to go, Wang figured to be the fixture at No. 1 seed for the Falcons.

But instead, she finds herself playing second fiddle this year. And that's fine by her.

When junior Melissa Kandinata, considered one of the best 15-year-old girls players in the country, relocated from Florida to the Triangle, Wang had little choice but to move down a seed on the team.

But she did have a choice in how to handle it. In a sport that focuses on the individual, it would've been all too easy and expected for Wang to pout or be sour toward the move.

Yet in her mind, to react that way was never an option.

"I really like her. I don't mind playing two behind her because she's a really good player," Wang said. "It just makes our team stronger."

Both are still undefeated in singles, and are especially dominant in doubles, where the two have teamed up to win 24 of 26 games played.

"It's really fun to play with her. We're pretty good as a team," Kandinata said. "We connect well."

It's a dynamic duo, and an odd couple at the same time. While their games are similar, their dispositions differ.

Where Wang is more the extrovert, Kandinata keeps things closer to the vest. Kandinata's shyness is one of the first things Wang remembers about their first meeting.

"She was really quiet," Wang said. "Everybody was kind of scared to get to know her.

"But she had this huge smile on her, and that's when I knew I liked her."

Instead of becoming possessive over rankings and seedings, the two share a disregard for those kinds of things.

"I have just seen them, from day one, work together without a lot of thought of, 'Oh, you're a one and I'm two,' " Falcons coach Kevin Taylor said. "They are team-oriented, and I think you can see it when they play with each other.

"They're high-fiving and smiling. And I think they honestly respect each other's talents, and I haven't sensed one iota of ultra-competitiveness between the two of them. I truly haven't."

Outsiders might expect fits of jealousy and inner contempt, as often is the case in competitive sport. Maybe it's youth, but how the players have reacted should be the example, not the exception.

"They haven't been worn down by life yet," Taylor said. "They're still kids. They're both 15 years old now and maybe there's a lesson we can learn from that they don't know any better than to just pull for each other."