Longwood women’s tennis adds four freshmen
Published 6:24 pm Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Longwood head women’s tennis coach Bruce Myers will welcome four newcomers to the program in 2015-16 with the signings of freshmen Alex Brown (Lubbock, Texas), Fallon Burger (Fort Myers, Fla.), Daniela Diez (El Cangrejo, Panama) and Tess Willis (Boerne, Texas).
Those four join a Lancer program that enjoyed a breakthrough 2014-15 season in Myers’ first year, highlighted by a 10-win regular season and four double-digit singles winners. The incoming freshmen bolster a squad that returns one senior and four juniors, including singles players two through five.
“Without having a freshman class last year, I felt it was important to add depth to our roster,” said Myers, now entering his second year at Longwood after a 10-12 record in his debut season. “I strongly feel we added not only quality student-athletes but also four players who will be future leaders of this program.”
The freshmen’s arrival expands Longwood’s roster to nine members following the graduation of Longwood’s all-time Division I wins leader Malin Allgurin and senior classmate Nicole Parker, who locked down Longwood’s No. 1 and No. 6 spots last season.
Among Longwood’s returning players are senior Maria Coronel and a junior class of returning starters that includes Paloma Alatorre, Anna Pelak and Mason Thomas, and reserve Lauren Tucker.
Alex Brown hails from Frenship High School in Lubbock, Texas, where she was a three-year letterwinner before focusing solely on USTA Super Championship Division tournaments during her senior year.
Fallon Burger is a highly-touted recruit from Fort Myers, Fla., and enters Longwood ranked as the No. 44 recruit in Florida, No. 84 in the southeast and among the top 250 recruits in the entire country.
Daniela Diez comes to Longwood from Panama where she has extensive playing experience on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) circuit. She has years of experience competing internationally, participating in the ITF
Panama Bowl in 2013, 2014 and 2015, the ITF Copa Mundo Maya in Guatemala in 2013 and the Fed Cup in 2014.
Tess Willis was a two-year letter winner at Samuel V. Champion High School in Boerne, Texas, where she was twice named Champion’s Most Valuable Player. She played No. 1 singles both years and No. 1 doubles as a senior, reaching the district and regional finals in doubles.
The Lancers will open the fall season at the George Mason Invitational on Sept. 12-13 in Fairfax, Va.