The international flair of the Laredo Community College Palomino tennis program has been a key component in helping compile an impressive record of wins.
Established in 1971, the LCC men’s and women’s tennis program is well known in national and international tennis circles as a great opportunity for student-athletes to launch their intercollegiate tennis careers, Head Coach Jaime Donjuan said. The tennis program has consistently been nationally ranked.
In the last eight years under Donjuan’s leadership, the LCC tennis program has garnered bigger accolades, including the most recent national sports title it earned this spring.
The success perhaps can be attributed to Donjuan’s approach to recruit some of the world’s most gifted tennis players.
In the last eight years as head coach, Donjuan has brought to the LCC tennis program talented players from Croatia, Macedonia, Switzerland, Columbia, Poland and Argentina, among other countries.
The spring 2005 top-ranked men’s team featured another unique international mix of tennis players from all over the world, including the United States, Mexico, Spain, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and France.
So, why would a tennis player from Paris, France want to play as a walk-on without scholarship for a community college in Laredo? Only three of the entire seven-member Palomino men’s team received a scholarship. The rest played as walk-ons.
“Basically it’s the reputation in intercollegiate tennis that Laredo Community College has established and the success we have achieved working with international students. Some of the players have agents, former athletes and coaches, who search the world for the top tennis programs for the benefit of their clients. It’s (tennis agent representation) very common in Europe and the U.S.,” Donjuan explained.
On dealing with different languages, customs and other cultural differences, Coach Donjuan describes the experience as a rewarding learning process for players and coaches.
“From cultural traditions to work ethics, the players and coaches learn a lot from each other. It really is a very rewarding experience for all involved,” Donjuan noted.
Communication on the court is important. Luckily, LCC has been able to recruit players with unique language abilities.
“For example, our French tennis players understand and speak a bit of English and Spanish,” Donjuan said.
As for living on the U.S./Mexico border, most international players seem to become easily accustomed to the culture of this region.
“Our players from Paris, France seemed to enjoy the food in the area. Apparently, Mexican food is a luxury in their country,” Donjuan said.
PLAYER PROFILES
Charles
Audoire (freshman,
5’11”) is a walk-on from Paris, who was recruited with the assistance of a
personal agent. A business major, Audoire started to play tennis again after
three years due to an injury. This spring at nationals, Audoire reached the
semifinals in singles.
Henry
Estrella (freshman,
5’10”) of the Dominican Republic is attending LCC with scholarship. He
was the number-one junior player in his country between the ages of 10-18. Last
fall at LCC, he proved to be a great competitor, reaching the finals of the ITA
regional tournament. This spring in nationals, he won flight 2 singles and
reached the semi-finals in doubles. Estrella, a business major, is the team
captain.
Alex
Gonzalez (freshman,
5’10”) of Barcelona, Spain accepted a scholarship from LCC in the fall of 2004.
He made a big and fast impression after winning the Intercollegiate Tennis
Association Tournament; he is the first Palomino to win this title. This spring
in nationals, he was the first from LCC to capture the top flight in singles and
doubles. Gonzalez
grew up playing
tennis in Spain. He is interested in a career in kinesiology.
Aaron
Olavarrieta
(sophomore, 5'11") was a walk-on player for LCC for the past two years. A
native of Veracruz, Mexico, he graduated from Colegio La Salle. He played
tennis as an after-school sport and was ranked in the top 20 in Mexico in boy’s
singles. This spring in
nationals, Olavarrieta reached the semifinals in doubles. A business
administration major, Olavarrieta enjoys playing soccer and golf, too.
Thomas
Ollivier (freshman,
5’11”) also is from Paris. He, too, is a walk-on recruited with the help of a
personal agent. In France, he was top 20 in juniors in France. This spring in
nationals, Ollivier won the flight 3 doubles championship and was a flight 5
singles runner-up. The business major enjoys playing soccer in his spare time.
Alex
Ortega (sophomore,
5’10”) is a native of Miami who attended LCC with a scholarship. He won state
in high school and was ranked No. 34 in the nation in juniors. Ortega joined
LCC in the spring of 2004 and was the first at LCC to snare the top flight in
singles nationally and earn the national Rookie of the Year award. This spring
in nationals, Ortega won the championships for flight 2 singles and flight 1
doubles. The kinesiology major has accepted a scholarship to play for Oklahoma
State University this fall.
Daniel
Pazos (freshman, 6'5")
of Caracas, Venezuela is the
second in his family to play for LCC. The walk-on player is the brother of
former Palomino Eduardo Pazos. In the International Tennis Federation, Daniel
was ranked top 500 in singles and top 200 in doubles. In Venezuela, he reached
a high ranking of 3 in 18s. This spring in nationals, Pazos won in flight four
singles and flight three doubles. He is a business major.
The winning tradition at LCC hopefully will continue in 2006. Coach Donjuan is currently recruiting for the fall semester. On the women’s side, his attention is on players from Switzerland and France. For the men, he is eyeing a player from Germany.
Office of Marketing and Public Information
West End Washington St.
Laredo, TX 78040-4395
956- 721-5140
Fax 956-721-5443