North Carolina State University Athletics
Freshman Orientation For European Golfers
10/7/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Oct. 7, 2004
GoPack.com recently sat down with the two European rookies on the NC State women's golf team, Dawn-Marie Conaty and Stephanie Derrey. Conaty is from Dublin, Ireland and Derrey hails from Paris, France. These two imported golfing talents possess the rich sense of humor that make both of them fit right in with the rest of the Wolfpack.
GoPack: What has been the biggest adjustment for you so far?
Dawn-Marie: Being away from home, family and friends. The weather has been another thing. In Ireland the weather is pretty lousy, so it's been great being here in such great weather all the time. There's really been nothing that has been too tough though. So far it's been good.
Stephanie: Probably class. All the material is given in English and I speak French, so it's very different. Now I'm doing good though. The food is very different too. I'm not used to it. Being away from home and not being able to see my parents is hard. I really miss not hearing people speak French. I met a girl the other day from Canada and she was speaking French. That made me so happy. I thought it would be tougher than it is though. The girls on the team have really made it easier for us. They've done a great job helping us adjust to our new lives. If we need a ride somewhere since we don't have cars, or if we need help with classes or anything really, they've been there for us.
GoPack: How many times had you been to America before you showed up for class at the beginning of this semester?
Dawn-Marie: I came over here when I was about 10 and we went to Disney World. This March we came over to visit the school and then this fall when I moved here.
Stephanie: Since I've been 13, I've come here every summer for a month and I also came here a few times for a vacation.
 Stephanie Derrey (above) and Dawn-Marie Conaty have become friends as the two Europeans on the NC State women's golf team  |
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GoPack: How did you decide on NC State?
Stephanie: I visited another college and compared a few things (to NC State), like the academics, the golf team and the weather. I chose NC State because it fit best for me.
Dawn-Marie: When I came here on my recruiting trip the thing that really stood out to me was the girls (on the team). They were really nice and got along really well. That's what stood out more than the other colleges I visited. Not that the other teams were not friendly, they just didn't have the ...
Stephanie: Southern hospitality
Dawn-Marie: Yeah! That's what made me kept leaning towards NC State. Even though there were pluses about the other colleges, I kept coming back to NC State.
GoPack: Speaking of Southern hospitality, how has the language barrier been to deal with since I'm sure the Southern dialect here in North Carolina isn't quite like the English you two learned in school?
At this point we are interrupted by a loud bang, as a bird flies right into the window next to where we're sitting, breaking its neck and falling to ground dead. Obviously it's a little difficult to continue the interview, as none of us really knew what to say about it.
After a few moments, we pick up where we left off, trying to ignore the feathered friend laying motionless in a heap a few yards away.
GoPack: So what about the language difference between English and the strong southern accents that some of your coaches, teammates and others have around here?
Stephanie: I came to golf camp here (state of North Carolina) in Pine Needles when I was 16. The first week I was there, I couldn't understand anything because of the accent, but after a week I understood better and now I'm used to it. I know sometimes when I'm tired I have more trouble understanding it. I think the English we learned in school (in France) was more England English than American English, so that makes it a little different.
Dawn-Marie: I can't tell the difference between one American accent and another. It's funny though because with the girls on the team I can't tell what they're talking about half the time and they can't tell what I'm talking about the other half. We've had several discussions about what things mean in America because some of the phrases they say I've never heard of ever.
Stephanie: Sometimes somebody will say something and we'll look at each other and say "what is she talking about?!"
Dawn-Marie: I can tell now, when the girls don't understand me. Molly (Birmingham) kind of smiles, her eyes open a little wider and she just nods her head like she's saying "yeah!" Leslie (Stubblefield) just goes "Huh?" I'm catching on.
GoPack: I know Stephanie said she met a Canadian that spoke French, have you met anybody from Ireland, Dawn-Marie?
Dawn-Marie: There are two guys on the tennis team here who are from Ireland, Conor Taylor and Darragh Rowan. It's a weird coincidence about Darragh, I remember Coach Brewer would ring me and he told me that there was an Irish guy coming over on the tennis team. So I was like `oh wow, that's amazing.' Coach Brewer gave me his number and I called him. I was talking to him about where he was from and it was only like 15 minutes from where I live and I was like `What in the world? That's unreal!' Then I asked him what school he goes to and he said the Institute (of Education) and that's the same school I went to.
GoPack: (long pause) You didn't know him?
Dawn-Marie: No!
GoPack: (confused) Was it a gigantic school?
Dawn-Marie: It was weird. I was like `oh my...'
GoPack: (interrupting her) Let's make sure I'm understanding you right - You and Darragh went to the same high school, you both earned scholarships to play for the same college clear across the ocean and you didn't even know each other?
Dawn-Marie: Yes.
GoPack: Did you go to school there very long?
Dawn-Marie: Well, it's only a two-year school.
GoPack: You were there with him for two years?
Dawn-Marie: For two years, yes. It's weird. You don't get to know everyone there because of the way the timetables are set up there. It's different than the way schools are here.
GoPack: (nodding in agreement, but still in utter disbelief ) Yes, that is weird. Stephanie, have you met any Frenchmen here who just happened to live next door to you your whole life?
Stephanie: No, not yet anyway. I lived in Venezuala for five years (from age 2-7) so I also speak Spanish. I've met some people here who come from South America. I speak English and Spanish here, no French - except for when I play golf!
GoPack: In our last interview with Colby Cobb, she told us that you weren't crazy about the early morning workouts.
Stephanie: She told you that? No way! It was the first time I'd ever worked out. It was hard for me to wake up at six in the morning and go work out. It was impossible. Now it's not so bad and I'm getting used to it. I didn't know how to weightlift, so I'm just now learning how to do it and I've been pretty sore. I also hate running and we have to do a lot of cardio. I know that it is good for me though, so it is okay. I'm not the only one who hates workouts.
GoPack: It seems like you two have become pretty good friends.
Stephanie: It's a good thing that we both come from Europe, so sometimes we can talk to each other about certain things like missing home. Sometimes our United States friends don't understand.
Dawn-Marie: She calls me Irish friend and I call her my European friend. Steph and Dawn-Marie don't really come into the equation. It's `Hi my European friend' and then she goes `Hi my Irish friend.'
GoPack: When you get on the golf course everyday is that the one place where you feel at home and things aren't different?
Stephanie: We have to make adjustments in golf too. The courses in Europe are different than here. For example in France the fairways are harder so the ball rolls farther. Here the ball doesn't roll. You have to hit there in the air. Also the rough and grass is different, so we have to adjust a little bit and learn new shots around the green. We have to adapt to golf too.
Dawn-Marie: I find the courses very different than those at home. The layout and all that is fine, it's just the grass. The ball doesn't roll as much and the roughs have been an experience for me. There's two different roughs that I've come across here. One, the ball lands in the rough and it sits down so that when you hit it, the ball goes nowhere. Then you've got your other rough where the ball sits right on top and looks so inviting and then you go to hit it and the grass wraps around your club and the ball goes nowhere. What's the story with that?
GoPack: Imagine yourselves four years from now as seniors. How will you look back upon this year?
Dawn-Marie: I think the biggest thing for me, looking back, will be the day I arrived because that was such a roller coaster. I got the results of my leaving certificate, which is the equivalent to the SATs here, at half-seven of the morning and two hours later I left for the airport to come here. I didn't know if I had passed the test and so I didn't know if I was coming here or not until that morning. I cried when I got the envelope because I knew that my future was inside and then I cried again after I opened it. It was a great day, but one I'll never forget.
Stephanie: My English is improving everyday, but I'm sure I'll look back on the beginning of this year and laugh about all the things that I said that were wrong. It's already started happening. I remember talking to Molly one time and I said `if you propose me,' instead of `ask me.' Little mistakes like that where I use the wrong words will probably be funny to look back on.
