Women's Tennis: Three Added for Spring Season
January 12, 2005 01:40 PM | General
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By Jarrod Sudduth for MSNsportsNET.com
January 12, 2005
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia head women’s tennis coach Dan Silverstein announced today the addition of three athletes for the 2005 spring season.
Johanna Dorsey (Wheeling, W.Va.), Kathryn Gerber (Parkersburg, W.Va.) and Colleen Speaker (Morgantown, W.Va.) will all be eligible to compete for the Gold and Blue this spring. The in-state additions give the Mountaineers three West Virginia natives on their roster for the first time since the 1998-99 season.
“We are ecstatic to have this many in-state recruits on our roster,” Silverstein says. “These three girls are at the top of the talent pool in West Virginia and we are thrilled that they have made the decision to join our program.”
Dorsey comes to West Virginia as a freshman transfer from Quinnipiac University. The Wheeling Park graduate won the No. 1 seed division of the 2002 West Virginia state tennis championship as a sophomore and didn’t compete as a junior or senior in an effort to enhance her Middle States’ ranking.
The USTA’s Middle States section includes the upper portion of West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and parts of New York. She was ranked as high as sixth in the 18 year old girls division on the Middle States standings list. After finishing as a semifinalist and runner-up at the West Virginia Open, Dorsey captured the women’s open singles championship in the event at the age of 17.
“We feel very fortunate to have an athlete of Johanna’s caliber coming to our program,” Silverstein says. “She has a game that is based on solid ground strokes from the baseline and she has a great mental game that she uses to outwork her opponents.”
Gerber graduated a semester early from Parkersburg High and comes to West Virginia as one of the most decorated recruits in recent memory. She was ranked as high as 117th nationally in the USTA 18-year-old girls division. She is a two-time Mountain State Athletic Conference and WV state regional singles and doubles champion. Gerber won the No. 2 seed singles and No. 1 seed doubles state championship in 2002. Overall, the Parkersburg native finished her high school singles career with a record of 51-1.
Gerber played in the 2004 Super National Clay Court Championship in Memphis, Tenn., and the 2004 Super National Hard Court Championship in San Jose, Calif. She played the No. 1 position for the National 16’s Midwest Zone Team in 2002 and 2003 and trained at the Weil Tennis Academy in Ojai, Calif., during the 2004 spring semester.
“We believe that Kathi is going to be a top four performer for us this spring,” Silverstein says. “She attacks balls inside the baseline with powerful ground strokes and has the ability to dominate every match she plays.”
Speaker comes to WVU as a transfer from Villanova where she competed for the Wildcats this past fall. The University High product was a three-time member of the WV All-State tennis team and a four-time all-NCAC selection. Speaker’s greatest feat came last spring when she won the No. 1 seed division of the 2004 WV state tennis championship.
She finished as a state runner-up in 2001 and 2002 and was a four-time NCAC player of the year. During her junior career, she was ranked as high as 14th in the Mid-Atlantic section of the USTA.
“Colleen is an extremely athletic talent that will battle for a spot in our lineup immediately,” Silverstein says. “Her powerful ground strokes from both sides will be a welcome addition to our program.”
West Virginia opens the 2005 spring season on Friday, Jan. 21, when it battles future BIG EAST member Cincinnati.
