Latest Women's Tennis Recruiting Class Earns National Ranking
June 18, 2013 | Women's Tennis
June 18, 2013
2013 TennisRecruiting.net Mid-Major Rankings
BOSTON - The Boston University women's tennis team will begin its inaugural season in the Patriot League with newcomers Iris Lin and Barbara Rodriguez, 29th-year head coach Lesley Sheehan announced Tuesday afternoon. The Class of 2017 was ranked ninth nationally among mid-major programs according to TennisRecruiting.net, giving Sheehan her fourth top-10 class since 2008.
The mid-major conferences for tennis include programs from the America East, American Athletic, Atlantic 10, Atlantic Sun, Big East, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, CAA, C-USA, Great West, Horizon, MAAC, MAC, MEAC, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, SoCon, Southland, SWAC, Summit, Sun Belt, WCC, and WAC conferences from NCAA Division I - as well as all programs outside of NCAA Division I.
A native of South San Francisco, Calif., Lin is a four-star recruit who ranked as high as No. 2 in Northern California's (NorCal) Girls 18 age group. She won the 61st annual Challenge Cup in both mixed and women's doubles while reaching the finals in singles action her senior year. She was selected to represent NorCal's G18s Fed Cup team as a junior and previously earned a selection to the Maze Cup, which features the top players in California.
Rodriguez is an elite player from Venezuela who will be studying at her father's alma mater after he graduated from the College of Arts and Sciences back in 1980. She moved to Hilton Head, S.C., in high school to attend the Heritage Academy and train at the Stan Smith Academy. Ranked as high as No. 278 by the International Tennis Federation, she had a successful juniors career, winning the 2010 Copa Horizontes de la Amistad singles title and later reaching the finals of the South American Championship in doubles.
Both women were members of the National Honor Society in high school and will be joining a Terrier squad that went 11-6 this past season, highlighted by its first win against No. 63 Boston College since 2009 and first victory against Brown since 2007.
Ranked 15th in the end of the year ITA Northeast Regional Rankings, rising sophomore Lauren Davis led BU with a 16-11 singles record, highlighted by wins against two BC players ranked ahead of her. Other key returnees include junior Sami Lieb, who picked up a combined 10 singles wins in the No. 2-3 slots during the spring, and senior Leonie-Charlotte Athanasiadis, who finished the season eighth in the region for doubles with partner Jessi Linero ('13).
Sophomore Kim McCallum collected 10 singles victories during the spring at No. 4-6 during the spring, Madison Craft was a combined 5-1 in singles and doubles before suffering a season-ending injury. Johanna Hyoty was out of action her first year, but will bring plenty of experience to the team after ranking in the top 900 for both WTA singles and doubles.
The Terriers departed the America East with 22 conference crowns and 13 NCAA appearances and will officially join the Patriot League on July 1.
