Michelle Spencer: Captain, Leader and Student

Samantha Butcher - ONEONTA, NY

College alone can be a stressful time, being a student and handling classes, a new environment, social life as well as much more.  However, the life of a student athlete is one only certain students get to experience.  Among these students is SUNY Oneonta women's tennis player, Michelle Spencer.

Senior Captain Michelle Spencer
Picture from SUNY Oneonta website

Spencer is in her senior year at Oneonta and is not only balancing life on the court and in the classroom but as the captain of her team as well.  This is a task only a select few athletes receive. Head Coach, Lonnie Mitchel, knew Spencer had leadership potential as early as her freshman year. He believes her passion and drive on the court and desire to improve sparked the possibility of her leadership. Not only does her coach believe Spencer has excelled as captain, her teammates agree too.

"I think everyone on the team looks up to her. I think she's a great role model and I think she's very into her sport and very dedicated and passionate about tennis," said teammate and assistant captain, Christine Santarsiero.

Spencer leading her team in huddle

She leads her team in workouts, practice, matches, school and any other problems they may encounter.  Coach Mitchel believes she is the perfect buffer between him and the players and is there to pass along his messages in a way the players will appreciate. Along with her tennis career Spencer is dealing with classes, school work and an internship.  Even with all of this work she never slacks in any aspect and her hard work is always noted.


"As a student athlete shes incredibly, she just balances and as a leader you have to even balance more because I rely on her for many things," said Coach Mitchel.

Spencer in match vs. Hamilton College

Spencer believes because of the experiences she has had she can be more marketable when looking for a job. Being a student athlete is a quality that brings these students and prospective employees to another level. While it has not been an easy journey she is very happy with how things have gone.

"It's been the best experience of my life, honestly. It's been hard at times, of course, but I wouldn't trade it for the world," said Spencer.

Plans for the near future include getting a job near her home town of Homer, NY, for the summer and then taking on graduate school.