CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Eastern Illinois head tennis coach John Blackburn has announced the addition of four future Panthers following recent NLI signings.

Joining the EIU men and women for the 2013-14 season will be Grant Thompson (Hawthorn Woods, Ill./Lake Zurich), Kelly Iden (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) and Kamile Stadalninkaite (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North).

Meanwhile, Ryan Henderson (Auckland, New Zealand) is set to immediately join the Panther roster at the midpoint of the season prior to the start of the 2013 spring slate.

Iden owns a stellar 47-6 high school tennis record at Hamilton Southeastern HS.  According to tennisrecruiting.net, she's currently ranked #5 in the entire state of Indiana, while also owning a #244 national ranking.  Kelly is a member of both her school's student-athlete council and National Honor Society.

Stadalninkaite earned consecutive Second Team IHSA All-State honors at Naperville North HS, finishing in the Top 16 twice, while also playing at the very top of the singles lineup.

“We're very excited about Kelly and Kamile joining the team,” said Blackburn.  “Both have excellent work ethics and a passion for tennis that will fit in well with our returning group of players. They also have very solid competitive results that should allow them to make a strong impact on our team.”

Thompson saw action at the No. 1 spot at Lake Zurich HS, where he earned a high rank of #20 in the Midwest and #8 in the Illinois USTA rankings during his career.  He is also an honor roll award winner.

Henderson, an international student-athlete from New Zealand, captured third place at the Boy's 16's national championship.  He also earned #3 and #11 marks for his respective Boys 16-and-under and Boys 18-and-under rankings, while finishing with a #963 International Tennis Federation rank.

“Ryan is expected to make an immediate impact on our team this spring,” added Blackburn.  “Both he and Grant have proven results at a high level, and have styles of play that should fit in well on our team and give them a chance to be successful in competition.”

The two current Panther squads recently finished up unofficial autumn play in preparation for the 2013 campaign which is set to get underway this coming January.  The EIU women look to return to Ohio Valley Conference post-season action, while the men also hope to continue end-of-season, league tournament play as well.

... for more info, contact Bart Rettberg, Asst. SID