From walk-on to all-conference for Stoughton's Melissa Ramos

By Jim Fenton, ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER



STOUGHTON — When she arrived at Southern New Hampshire University as a freshman in 2004, Melissa Ramos wasn’t planning to try out for the women’s tennis team.

After playing four seasons at Stoughton High School, Ramos hadn’t been recruited and she figured it wouldn’t be worth it to pursue a spot on the Penmen roster.

“I just didn’t think I’d be good enough,” said Ramos, a Stoughton resident.

Then, following the semester break of her first year at the Manchester, N.H., school, there was a change in plans for Ramos.

Amanda Nason, who was in several of Ramos’ classes, encouraged her to come out for the team, which was left shorthanded when a car accident injured two players.

Ramos not only made the squad as a walk-on that first year, she eventually developed into an All-Northeast-10 Conference player at Southern New Hampshire.

It was an impressive run for someone who didn’t have tennis on her agenda when her stay at college began in ’04.

“It’s funny,” said Ramos, who eventually earned an athletic scholarship as a junior. “One of my teammates kids me and says, ‘You weren’t even supposed to play tennis here and look at you now.’”

Ramos, who graduates Saturday, was named to the All-NE-10 first team at No. 3 doubles with Nason after they went unbeaten, and she was a third-team selection at No. 5 singles this spring.

As juniors last season, Ramos and Nason made the all-conference second team in doubles, and Ramos was on the third team at No. 5 singles that year.

“I never thought that would happen,” said Ramos of earned All-NE-10 accolades two years in a row. “I never thought I’d even play tennis here.

“I came out, met the girls, got my strokes down and learned the strategies. I think it turned for me going into my junior year. I really wanted to prove to myself that I could do good things in college.

“I went home and played on the courts in Stoughton the summer before my junior year and came back that fall a lot better. I played with more confidence. I wanted to prove to myself I could be that good and I took it serious.”

Ramos didn’t start playing tennis until her freshman year at Stoughton High. Soccer was the top priority, a sport she participated in for 14 years.

“I liked tennis, but I liked contact sports more,” said Ramos. “Then I started getting pretty good at it.”

Ramos said she had a sub-.500 record playing No. 5 singles as a freshman at SNHU and showed improvement as a sophomore.

That’s when Ramos and Nason became doubles partners, and they put together a 29-7 record over three seasons, including 13-0 this year. The duo helped the Penmen reach the semifinal round of the NE-10 tournament for the first time ever.

“It’s their friendship that helps make them so good,” said Coach Greg Coache. “In doubles, it’s about the camaraderie. You have one going to one place on the court and the other automatically goes to the other side. That’s how they work.

“They knew what each other was doing. It was a wonderful thing to see. They worked together so well. They jelled so nicely. They had great anticipation. To go undefeated in this conference is hard to do.”

Ramos, who was 9-4 in singles this season, said that the goal for her doubles team was to have a perfect final season.

“We pump each other up and it was fun playing doubles with her,” said Ramos. “It was amazing to go through undefeated. We cried after that last match.”

Ramos had 29 career wins in singles and 36 in doubles during her four-year stay at SNHU, and her improvement was evident with each passing season.

“My coach likes to joke around that I’m the human backboard,” said Ramos. “I like to run everything down and I get it back.”

Said Coache, “Her strength is her mental toughness and patience. She has no problem hanging with a point. She hits the forehand and backhand with consistency and places the ball very well. She probably, as well as anybody on the team, can read an opponent and implement what needs to be done to beat her.”

The development of Ramos from a freshman with no plans to play tennis to one of the best players in the NE-10 certainly benefited the Penmen.

“She wasn’t going to play college tennis, but without her, we don’t make the conference playoffs, let alone get to the semifinals,” said Coache.