A Whole New World
6/5/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
June 5, 2008
By
Vince Baker
While other freshmen worry about fitting in during their first year away from home at college, as well as everything else that freshmen experience, women's tennis student-athlete Manon Noe has had to deal with that, and much more. Arriving across the ocean to Michigan State from France last fall, some aspects she has had to deal with are a different school, country, culture and people, those of which she considers very different from those in France.
"I have had to adapt myself to everything," said Noe. "From the time of dinner to what a grade-point average is, but people have been very up front with me."
Being away from her family for extended periods of time is nothing new to both her and her family. At the young age of 12, Noe and her family decided that the best path for her to take, to improve her tennis skills and to increase her chances of turning professional, was to participate with the French Tennis Federation. The Federation takes in a select few athletes each year, some of the best in the country, and allows them to train regularly.
"We pretty much practiced like pros with the goal to be pros," explained the Spartan freshman.
This, however, did not detract from school, as they also spend time studying and attending classes, similar to other kids their age. Since she was with the Federation, she was able to train extremely hard and further the game in which she loves, but it was not without its price. When with the FTF, athletes are away from their families for weeks at a time. They are only allowed to go home and see their families every two to three weeks.
Although she plays the game with a passion unmatched by many competitors, Noe realized at the young age of 15 that even though it was her dream, turning pro may not be the best decision for her life. She decided that academics were of more importance, and decided to go back to school full-time, but knew her love for tennis would never fade. For the next couple of years she furthered her high school education, working toward an achievement which is very important to the French culture, a high school diploma. But it was not until she was playing a tournament in France that put her on the recruiting radar.
While running a summer camp in LaBaule, France, The College of William & Mary's head women's tennis coach, Kevin Epley, took notice of Noe's passionate and powerful play. Upon Epley's return to the states, he shared the experience with current Michigan State head women's tennis coach, Erica Perkins, who worked as an assistant under Epley from 2004 through 2006.
"Kevin was very impressed with her both as a tennis player and as a person," said Perkins. "So when I got the job at Michigan State, he recommended that I get in touch with her."
The freshman said that she received a couple other scholarship offers from colleges, but that her original visit with Coach Perkins really reaffirmed everything that she wanted to know about Michigan State. Surprisingly, even before the recruiting trip, coach Perkins had not seen any film on Noe.
"Very rarely would I go solely on someone else's word on a player, but in Manon's case I did," said Perkins.
Noe is not shy about showing her gratitude towards the second-year Coach for the opportunity in which she has been given at Michigan State.
"First of all, Coach Perkins allowed me to come visit here," she said. "It was huge for me, because I had never been to the United States before. I didn't know exactly what America was like."
However, the transition has not been as easy as one could have scripted.
"It's when you are away from home when you realize how important family is," said Noe.
Thankfully, she has had the foundation of her fellow teammates to help her along. As a team, they spend quite a bit of time together. From on the court at practice and matches, to off the court going to movies and studying together at the academic support center. Manon explains that the team is her family while she is away at school, and that senior captain, Christine Bader, has really helped her through her first year in college.
"Christine has a good personality," said Noe. "She has helped me so much and I really thank her for that."
Since arriving on campus, Noe has had a tremendous impact on the team's success, which has also come as a surprise to Perkins.
"I knew Manon would make our line-up," said the head coach. "But I think she adjusted to the hard courts much quicker than I anticipated and played much higher in singles than I expected. She also picked up our doubles system very quickly for a freshman and was a pleasant surprise there as well."
As a freshman she posted an impressive 8-2 record to open dual-match play, which is one of the stronger starts in recent years for a Spartan freshman. Her most notable victory to date came on March 26, 2008 when she upset top-100 player Tara Simpson from the University of Washington, winning 7-5, 7-5.
Even though she may be listed as a freshman, Noe has shown that her experience with the French Tennis Federation has allowed her to play at a much more mature level than others her age. Noe feels that her experiences so far at Michigan State have allowed her to adapt her European game to the American game much quicker, helping her win matches against different types of opponents. "It's allowed me to take the good things from here," Noe explained. "But at the same time keeping my European-style game.
A style the Manon claims is more emotional then the way she has seen Americans play.
Now that Bader has graduated, there remains an open hole at the number one spot in the starting rotation. With her skill level and quickly-developing learning curve, Noe looks to return for her sophomore campaign and compete for the unoccupied top spot.
"I know she is working hard and will be competing a lot this summer." Perkins said. "And with that, she should challenge for our top spot along with senior Stephanie Kebler."
After her talk with Perkins, before she traveled back to France to spend the summer with her family, they both felt her progress this summer will dictate where she starts out next season.
"I've just got to try hard to be more consistent for next year," Noe said. "Hopefully I can lead my team at the number one position."
The pressures of being number one are nothing she would be unaccustomed to, as she has already handled the pressures of life far away from her family. Now, can she take that pressure and deal with it in another country?
