Nov. 19, 2002

Kentucky women’s tennis coach Mark Guilbeau announced the signing of four recruits on Tuesday, Nov. 19. Sarah Foster, Lara Maurer, Joelle Schwenk and Christine Simpson will join the Wildcat family in the fall of 2003.

Foster, a Lexington, Ky., native, is the current Kentucky State High School Singles champion. She won the title last May, leading Lexington Christian Academy to its first-ever state championship. In 2000, Sarah and her older sister, Emily, won the state high school doubles championship. Foster also captured the 2002 USTA Kentucky State Closed 18 and under singles title.

Maurer comes to UK from Bay Village High School in Bay Village, Ohio. In 2001 she won the Ohio Division II State Singles Championship. During her sophomore and junior seasons, she amassed a very impressive 63-2 singles record, which included a perfect 32-0 during her junior year.

Schwenk is ranked No. 3 in Florida’s 18-and-under division. The Coconut Creek, Fla., native was named the 2002 South Florida Girl’s Tennis Player of the Year while at Cardinal Gibbons High School. She won the Easter Bowl doubles championship and was a finalist at the Eddie Herr ITF Championships. She reached the final of the USTA Florida State Closed 18’s and was a semifinalist at the ITF Orange Bowl Championships. Schwenk was ranked as high as No. 13 in the US National 16’s rankings.

Simpson, a product of Broughton High School in Raleigh, N.C., won back-to-back NC State High Singles Championships in 2001 and 2002. She led Broughton to the NC State High School Team Championship each of the last three years. She is a two-time USTA NC State Closed Singles champion and won the USTA Southern Section Doubles Championship in 2000. In 2002 she was nominated for the Wendy’s High School Heismann Award.

“The University of Kentucky and our women’s tennis program are very fortunate to have Sarah, Lara, Joelle and Christine joining us,” Guilbeau said. “All four of these players have had success at the USTA National level and I am confident that each of them will reach their full potential while at UK. They have shown the dedication it takes to compete at the top level in collegiate tennis.

“Aside from being exceptional tennis players, these ladies have impressed me with their desire, spirit and intensity. We are grateful for their commitment and are very excited about their desire to be a part of UK women’s tennis. To attract such a strong class to UK speaks highly of the current and past players in our program. We are confident that with these players, the tradition of success at UK will continue for the next several years.”