When Alicen Liu was a youngster, she watched Andre, her older brother and a varsity player during all of his years at Novi High School, win the state championship at 4S in 2014. She was already hooked, enjoying the game with kids “who gave me a positive introduction to what high school tennis would be like.”

She came to her freshman year well prepared having played USTA tournaments and finishing fourth in Michigan. At one point, she owned  a UTR of 8.3. This is a rating system compiled using results of  USTA tournaments that, according to a coach familiar with how this system works, puts her at a Division 1 college level. She also worked with Dave Brown to whom she gives plenty of credit for playing a huge role in shaping her into the player that she is today. “His endless encouragement and wise instruction has helped me to improve my game both technically and mentally,” she says.

 

In her freshman year, Alicen was already the best player on the team. "She was a youngster who had exceptional talent but came in with the utmost respect for the players already in the program,” says Dan Lowes, her coach.  But to be sure, she was more than ready to make her mark on the world of the Wildcats.

 

But the outside world wasn’t.  In her freshman year, Covid robbed her of a chance to show what she could do on behalf of her high school. And that was only the beginning of her misfortunes. In her sophomore year, she was 19-4 and good enough to receive a No. 3 seed at the state tournament but had to withdraw due to a shoulder injury, Her senior year was the same, a disappointment in that she had to withdraw from the state finals because of illness the night before the tournament. She had played 1S all three years for her squad.

 

Throughout these years, she was a quiet leader who was most certainly no prima donna. “She was encouraging to her teammates, rooting them on in their matches,” says her coach Dan Lowes. “She solidified a very difficult position and handled it confidently, allowing her teammates to look up to her and improve on their games.”

 

As it turns out, she is an exceptional humanitarian as well. “Tennis has played such a vital role in my life, and I have always wanted to share my love for the sport with others,” she says. “Specifically, I was a program director for Novi ACEing Autism, an organization that helped teach autistic children the motor and social skills acquired through tennis. After creating drills and talking to the kids, the experience opened my eyes to the community around me and further solidified my love for the sport.

 

To say that she was and is an exceptional student is an understatement. Rochester’s  Clayton Anderson, a three time state runner to this year’s Mr. Tennis, is matriculating at California Polytechnic State University. Alicen is currently at MIT in Course 6-14 which is a program that combines the subjects of computer science, economics, and data science. Yes, smart kids play tennis.

 

Requirements of being named Miss Tennis by the MHSTeCA involve more than success on the court. She must also be a good student, a good teammate, a good representative of her school, and a good person.

 

See above.

“I soon realized how big of an impact tennis could have and feel honored to take part in the sport.”