Jan. 31, 2008

KENNESAW, GA - Without even stepping foot onto campus, let alone the tennis courts, the newly formed Kennesaw State men's tennis team is drumming up excitement as their inaugural recruiting class came in ranked 29th nationally, garnering 12 top 25 votes, according the winter poll released by tennisrecruiting.net.

The Owls, who are set to begin play in the 2008-09 season, have secured commitments from seven players, all of which have signed national letter of intent with Kennesaw State.

"We are excited about the fact that we have a very talented recruiting class," said Kennesaw State head tennis coach Brandon Padgett. "Our focus is winning conference championships, and this is a great start in that direction"

International players Simon Janik and Ryan Boutell join the Owls after successful prep careers in Canada. Janik comes to Kennesaw from St. Aloysious Gonzaga High School in Mississauga, Ontario, (the same high school as freshman Agatha Palider on the women's team) and is currently the ninth-ranked player in Canada according to the ITF rankings.

Boutell joins the Owls after a successful prep career at John Rennie High School in Kirkland, Quebec. He has been ranked as high as No. 12 in the Province of Quebec and has won two USTA events in the last two years.

Four-star prospect Tyler Mills of Dunwoody, Ga. is one of four local players to join the first Owls recruiting class. The senior at Holy Innocents Episcopal School is currently the eighth ranked junior player in the state of Georgia, compiling a 42-4 record in his first three high school seasons.

A pair of three-star recruits in Andrew Suesserman and Michael Langel joins Mills in the Owls inaugural class. Suesserman is a senior and the number one player at two-time defending state champion St. Francis High School in Alpharetta, Ga., while Langel is a three-time team MVP at Roswell High School in Roswell, Ga.

Suesserman's identical twin brother Justin, a two-star recruit, is also set to join the Black and gold for the 2008-09 season. Justin is St. Francis's number two singles player and has competed in a number of national events in his junior career.

Lawrence Washington of Canton, Mich. rounds out the list of junior players that have signed National Letters of Intent with Kennesaw State. Washington was voted to the All-State team as a senior and earned four-consecutive All Area nods at Salem High School.

The Kennesaw State men's tennis team is set to begin play beginning in the 2008-09 season as a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference. More information on the KSU men's tennis team including breaking news can be found by visiting the Kennesaw State Athletics website at www.ksuowls.com and clicking on the men's tennis link at the top of the page.