Jan. 3, 2011
NORMAL, Ill. -
ISU men's tennis head coach Cris James has added three new freshmen to his team for the 2011 spring season, bringing in Juan David Varon, Tuomas Manner, and Jordan Badenko to provide depth in the Redbird lineup.
Varon, a native of Almenia, Colombia, has spent time playing in the United States, and James thinks he has potential to be a significant contributor.
"Juan's a bit of a wildcard," James said. "We have seen fewer results on paper with Juan than the other recruits, but from everyone we have been able to talk to, he seems to have a great work ethic and big upside."
Manner, hailing from Pori, Finland, has been inside the top 300 for juniors according to the International Tennis Federation, and has recorded victories over two top-40 players. James thinks Manner will be a good fit on his squad.
"He's left-handed, which can be tricky to play against," James said. "He also has plenty of experience playing indoors which should help him adapt quickly."
Badenko, from Sydney, Australia, is ranked in the top 100 in Australia's open men's rankings, and James likes his potential.
"He has some ATP doubles points," James said. "He's also spent time working on his game in Spain, which is a country that has a great reputation of developing players."
The addition of the freshmen trio provides some much-needed depth in the Redbird lineup, and James hopes that his newcomers can make their presence felt from day one.
"Adding these guys was huge because we needed some depth in our lineup," James said. "Last year's team was pretty strong at the top, but struggled at the bottom and in doubles. These guys are pretty strong recruits, and I'm hoping they will push some of our top players to really compete for their positions."
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