Just as the world of finding a mate has gone to the internet, so has the world of recruiting athletes to colleges.
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“There’s a ton of sources online,” explains Missouri State women’s tennis coach Mallory Weber. “Nowadays even Americans are posting these videos on YouTube and that’s a great way to start a contact.”
Weber recruited a trio of international players that way. She’d never seen them in-person. And the athletes, Ekartorina Donetskova of Russia, Anelisse Torrico-Moreno of Bolivia and Fati Khamissi of Morocco, only knew Missouri State from what they could find on the web. Yet they took the leap of faith for the chance to chase their American dream.
“It’s a risk on their part,” Weber said. “They don’t really know Missouri and I’m asking questions like ‘does it snow there’?”
“Sometimes you just have to go for it,” Moreno said. “You know you’re going to have a better future if you come here to the states.”
But certainly there’s a lot to get used to. Coming from big cities overseas to the Ozarks….
“Everything is different, Khamissi remarks. “The shape of the houses, the streets.”
“The bulk quantity of things surprises them,” Weber adds. “Who could possibly use a five-gallon thing of Gatorade.”
They were also struck by what passes for normal behavior and dress.
“People are very open-minded here, Khamissi said. “So you can do whatever you want. Go to class with pajamas on.”
“I’ve seen people in pajamas here in weird places,” Moreno adds.
“I’ve heard them talking about going to Wal-Mart for the first time,” Weber explained.
“And that was an overwhelming experience. They’ve never seen something like that.”
But by far the biggest culture shock was…
“The food,” Moreno said with a smile.
“It’s kind of hard to find warm food,” Khamissi said. “Everything here is like grab a sandwich and eat it along the way.”
“Back home everything is organic and super-healthy,” Moreno said.
“McDonald’s at home is so much better than here,” Khamissi said.
“Something I do not understand is how people eat peanut butter with everything.”
And of all the new things they’ve in America to keep those athletic bodies in shape, what they like most is…
“Doughnuts and pancakes,” Khamissi said. “We don’t have that in Morocco.”
And as they improve their tennis games, these young ladies are learning a lot about life as well. And how to stand-up on their own two-feet.
“When I came here I had to do everything for myself,” Khamissi recalled. “I was so lost. I did laundry for the first time. But actually it was a good thing that I left my comfort zone and started to be independent by myself.”
