STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Men's Tennis team has been hot on the recruiting trail, signing three new members to its 2012-13 squad. The new recruits will look to add firepower to the returning squad that reached the SoCon Championship quarterfinals for the first time since 2009.
The first Eagle recruit, Patrick Doherty, is the brother of current Georgia Southern Men's Tennis player Alex Doherty. According to tennisrecruiting.net, Doherty is the 154th-ranked recruit in the country and 9th-ranked in Georgia among the graduating class of 2012. The four-star recruit hails from Eaton School in Marietta, Ga. "Patrick is a big lefty who has a great technical foundation for college tennis," said Head Coach Nick Zieziula. "His serve is a major weapon, but he isn't a one-trick pony. Patrick has a lot of tools after his serve that allow him to adjust tactics when needed."
Rayane Djouad is another of the Eagles' new recruits. Djouad was ranked in the top-50 nationally in France's junior 18-and-under division. He is transferring to Georgia Southern after attending college this year at Centre National d'enseignement à Distance, Institut de Lyon. "Rayane has a very complete game and has some great experience in both juniors and men's open tournaments," said Zieziula. "His game has really been on the rise over the last few months, and we are excited to get him into our system so that he can continue to improve."
The Eagles have also inked Rafael Racy out of São Paulo, Brazil. Racy was ranked in the top-10 nationally in Brazil's junior 14-and-under division and top-20 in the 16-and-under division. "Rafael was one of the best junior players in Brazil and has some great experience playing ITF tournaments at both the junior and men's level," said Zieziula. "Rafael's professional approach to his training and academics will be a great asset to the team."
Doherty, Djoud and Racy will solidify the roster and add to its youth. The Eagles should only get better as they retool in the offseason and prepare for the 2012-13 season.
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