May 4th, 2023
Get to Know the Players at the FHSAA 2023 State Championships: Manci Pal
At the 2023 Florida High School Athletic Association Tennis State Championships, USTA Florida caught up with three-time State Champion, Manci Pal, a senior from Saint Andrew’s. Hear what she had to say about her journey in tennis, the season, and more.
Rapid Fire Questions
Q: When did you start your tennis journey?
A: When I was about nine years old.
Q: How about in high school tennis?
A; I moved to St Andrew’s when I was in eighth grade, so I’ve been playing since eighth grade on the Tennessee.
Q: What’s your favorite memory this high school season?
A: Getting to and winning Districts and Regionals.
Q: Do you attribute your success to any mentors, coaches?
A: Coach Reid, he’s been my coach here at St Andrews for five years now. He’s great, super supportive, we love him and he’s a great guy.
Q: What’s been your experience playing on a high school tennis team?
A: I never played on a team before, because tennis isn’t really a team sport, so it’s really uplifting and such a lonely sport that before high school just felt lonely. It has really made me excited for college tennis and on.
Q: Do you have any plans to continue playing after high school?
A: I’m going to be playing DI tennis at the Naval Academy starting next fall.
Q: Do you have any pump-up jams or routines before or after games?
A: I drink a Celsius, that usually that gets me going. We do like a “Scotts on three” chant, that really gets me going too.
Interested in playing high school tennis next season? Visit ustaflorida.com/youth-tennis for all the latest information.
