Lady Lions Tennis2012-13

Kaitlin Hillebrand Sarah Palacio Jordan Chandler

2012-13 Lady Lions Tennis Schedule

Sept. 7-8 at Abilene Christian University Abilene, TXSept. 14-15 at OKC Collegiate Tennis Open Oklahoma City, OKSept. 28-30 at ITA Small College Regionals Laredo, TXOct. 5-6 at Dog Skogman Invitational Seguin, TXOct. 9 SE Oklahoma State Univ. Gainesville, TXOct. 12-13 at Collin College Fall Open Plano, TX

Feb. 2 at Tarleton State University Stephenville, TXFeb.8-9 at Ouachita Baptist University Arkadelphia, ARFeb. 15-16 at Collin County Tennis Bash Plano, TXFeb. 22-23 at Super Six Invitational Plano, TXMar. 8 vs. McMurry University Denton, TXMar. 18 vs. Salisbury (MD) University Gainesville, TXMar. 20 vs. Abilene Christian University Wichita Falls, TXApr. 5-6 at OKC Collegiate Tennis Open Oklahoma City, OKApr. 12-13 at SW JUCO Championships Temple, TXApr. 18-20 at NJCAA Region V Tournament Plano, TXMay 5-9 at NJCAA National Tournament Tucson, AZ

This 2012-13 Media and Recruiting Guide was produced by the NCTC Public Relations Department. Design work by Darin Allred, Public Relations Specialist.

All media inquiries should be directed to Darin Allred at 940-668-3356 or by email at dallred@nctc.edu.

Recruiting inquiries should be directed to Coach Brian Waddell at 940-668-3354 or by email at bwaddell@nctc.edu

Meet the CoachBrian WaddellHead Coach - 5th Season

Coach Brian Waddell is in his fifth year at North Central Texas College.

He came from Flower Mound High School where in two seasons he took his high school tennis team to the regionals and state ranking in both seasons.

Here at NCTC his teams have been ranked No. 7, No. 9, No. 11, and No. 22 in the nation in JUCO Division I. This past season his team came in at No. 22 in the fall and had risen to No. 9 in the spring and had wins over the No. 9 and the No. 33 nationally-ranked opponents.

Coach Waddell has been a USPTA teaching tennis pro-fessional for over 25 years and has also coached high shool tennis thoughout Texas and Indiana.

In Texas he coached and taught in the Klein ISD near Houston at Klein Oak High School and at Klein Col-lins High School.

He also played tennis in high school at Connersville High School in Indiana where he lead his team and himself to a perfect 27-0 record his senior year. Coach Waddell played at Cumberland University in Kentucky and received all district honors all four years in singles and doubles as well as receiving All-American honors in singles and doubles his junior and senior years.

Coach Waddell has one daughter (Heather Waddell Rosplock) and three grandsons (Tyler-Hunter-Zander) in the Spring, Texas area.

Coaching Philosophy:

My coaching philosophy is based on my hears of experience participating in all sports, not just tennis. I believe you can practice 10 hours a day and not improve your skill level or talent level. I do believe that you must practice to the best of your ability each and every day which in turn will prepare you to the upmost for the next competition at any level. Some days you can only give 75% of yourself to practice or whatever you are doing, but you must give 100% of that 75% if you want to improve and be successful. This will also be true in everyday life, no matter what your profession happens to be. Finally, be proud of who you are and what you do and you will already be a winner!

Brian Waddell

Meet the Lady Lions

PLAYER CLASS HEIGHT HOMETOWN

Elizabeth Arens FR 5-8 Keller, TXJordan Chandler SO 5-2 Nederland, TXCassidy Crawford SO 5-8 Tipton, EnglandKaitlin Hillebrand SO 5-7 Lewisville, TXNika Juricic SO 5-7 Umag, CroatiaSarah Palacio SO 5-6 Pearland, TXMercedee Schwartz FR 5-6 Ontario, OR

Head Coach: Brian Waddell (5th season)

Jordan Chandler5-2, SophomoreNederland, TXNederland HS

Major: UndecidedFavorite Class: ChemistryFavorite Musical Artist: BreadFavoritte Food: MexicanFavorite Movie: Legends of the FallFavorite Actor: Johnny DeppFavorite Cartoon Character: PocahontasFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: Chocolate Chip Cookie DoughGreatest Athletic Moment: Winning 4A District title as a sophomoreAthletic Accomplishments: USTA champs, winning two district championships in high school, named MVP her junior year, four-time regional qualifier, four-year varsity player.Family: Daughter of Mark and Diana Chandler; Has one older sister, Briana (24).

Cassidy Crawford5-8, Sophomore

Birmingham, EnglandTurves Green HS

Major: BusinessFavorite Class: EnglishFavorite Musical Artist: Taylor SwiftFavoritte Food: ItalianFavorite Movie: Alice in Wonderland (Tim Burton version)Favorite Actor: Chris HemsworthFavorite Cartoon Character: Raphael from Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: CaramelGreatest Athletic Moment: Playing college tennisAthletic Accomplishments: Ranked No. 4 in British Isles U16, four-time Staf-fordshipe County champion, Ranked No. 1 for Staffordshire, U18 Summer National winner.Family: Daughter of Stephanie and Ray Crawford; Has one sister, Darcy (22).

Kaitlin Hillebrand5-7, SophomoreLewisville, TX

Flower Mound HS

Major: UndecidedFavorite Class: ChemistryFavorite Musical Artist: The BeatlesFavoritte Food: MexicanFavorite Movie: Walk the LineFavorite Actor: Gerard ButlerFavorite Cartoon Character: Dori from Finding NemoFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: Orange SwirlGreatest Athletic Moment: When my high school team beat our No. 1 rivals for first place my senior year.Athletic Accomplishments: Three-year member of the varsity tennis team.Family: Daughter of Yvette and Richard Hillebrand; Has three siblings, Kristen (29), Kara (24) and Kasey (17).

Nika Juricic5-7, SophomoreUmag, Croatia

Mount Shasta HS

Major: UndecidedFavorite Class: MathFavorite Musical Artist: RihannaFavoritte Food: Croatian or ItalianFavorite Movie: BurlesqueFavorite Actor: Matthew McCounagheyFavorite Cartoon Character: The Donkey from ShrekFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: Vanilla and YogurtGreatest Athletic Moment: Playing for NCTCAthletic Accomplishments: Section Champion at Mount Shasta High School, Qualified for the California State Championship, Ranked in the Top 16 Commu-nity College players in California in both singles and doubles.Family: Daughter of Alenka and Giordano; Has one younger sibling, Vedran (15).

Sarah Palacio5-7, Sophomore

Pearland, TXAlvin HS

Major: UndecidedFavorite Class: SculptureFavorite Musical Artist: BlackmillFavoritte Food: MexicanFavorite Movie: Secondhand LionsFavorite Actor: James FrancoFavorite Cartoon Character: Bloo from Fosters Home for Imaginary FriendsFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: Cookies and CreamGreatest Athletic Moment: Hitting a drop shot against Southeastern OklahomaAthletic Accomplishments: High School MVP for four years, High School team captain in 2011, USTA Champs.Most Emberrassing Athletic Moment: Stepping on my racquet while doing drills.Family: Daughter of Linda Palacio.

Elizabeth Arens5-8, Freshman

Keller, TXKeller HS

Major: Business FinanceFavorite Class: MathFavorite Musical Artist: Flo RidaFavoritte Food: Asian and WatermelonFavorite Movie: She’s the ManFavorite Actor: Channing TatumFavorite Cartoon Character: Hello KittyFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: StrawberryGreatest Athletic Moment: Playing an epic point in doubles and finishing off the point with an overhead winner to win first place in a tournament.Athletic Accomplishments: USTA champs in 14, 16 and 18; three-year varsity tennis player; Top seed in District 7-5A; Honorable Mention Doubles 2010-12.Family: Daughter of David and Anne Arens; Has one older brother, Alex (21).

Mercedee Schwartz5-6, FreshmanOntario, OROntario HS

Major: Graphic DesignFavorite Class: ArtFavorite Musical Artist: Luke BryanFavoritte Food: CrabFavorite Movie: GreaseFavorite Actor: Ryan GosslingFavorite Cartoon Character: Ariel from Little MermaidFavorite Ice Cream Flavor: VanillaGreatest Athletic Moment: Playing college tennisAthletic Accomplishments: Three-year member of high school varsity tennis team.Family: Daughter of Rick and Linda Schwartz; Has one younger sister, Alexis (13).

Facilities

The Lady Lions tennis team plays and practices at the Chaloupecky Tennis

Center on campus. The complex includes four lighted courts. The

tennis team has their own locker room just steps away from the courts inside

Lions Fieldhouse with individual player lockers and a team area

along with private restrooms

The Lady Lions use the weight room inside the Lions Clubhouse and Fitness Center which features

state-of-the-art equipment

Tennis players are housed at Bonner Hall, an on-campus residence hall with easy access to the

cafeteria and classroom buildings

Lady Lion HistoryYEAR RANK SITE OF CHAMPIONSHIP

1981 3rd Place Ocala, Florida1982 4th Place Ocala, Florida1983 3rd Place Ocala, Florida1985 5th Place Ocala, Florida1986 3rd Place Midland, Texas1987 3rd Place Atlanta, Georgia1990 2nd Place Tucson, Arizona1991 3rd Place Tyler, Texas1993 2nd Place Plano, Texas1994 2nd Place Plano, Texas1995 3rd Place Tucson, Arizona1996 4th Place Tucson, Arizona1997 4th Place Tucson, Arizona1998 4th Place Tucson, Arizona1999 4th Place Tucson, Arizona2000 3rd Place Tucson, Arizona2001 3rd Place Tucson, Arizona2002 7th Place College Station, Texas2003 6th Place College Station, Texas2004 5th Place College Station, Texas2005 4th Place Tucson, Arizona2006 17th Place Tucson, Arizona2007 5th Place Tucson, Arizona2008 6th Place Tucson, Arizona2009 7th Place Tucson, Arizona2010 9th Place Tucson, Arizona

2009 National ChampionsKatherine Kelly and Cimen Soy

No. 2 Doubles

2008 National ChampionsNadia Solomon and Brittanee George

No. 2 Doubles

At the 2009 NJCAA National Tournament in Tucson, Ariz., Katherine Kelly and Cimen Soy won the No. 2 doubles National Championship by defeating Francess Basspp amd Frederique Suntrum of Lee College 6-3, 7-6 (5) in the finals.

At the 2008 NJCAA National Tournament in Tucson, Ariz., Nadia Solomon and Brittanee George won the No. 2 doubles National Championship by defeating Jacklyn Lahari and Cally Woerner of Collin College 7-6 (3), 6-2.

Cimen Soy Katherine Kelly

Moving On

The Lady Lions had two players from the 2012 team sign with four-year schools this past spring. Pri Rijal (College of Coastal Georgia) and Mel Telfer (Alabama State University) both completed

two years at NCTC before moving on.

Over the years, more than 90 Lady Lions have moved on to four-year colleges to continue their tennis careers after leaving NCTC. Players have moved on to such schools as Texas Tech University, University of Oklahoma, University of Iowa, University of Wisconsin, University of Hawaii, Texas

Christian University, University of South Carolina, Florida State University, Michigan State University, University of North Texas, Louisiana Tech University, University of Nevada-Las Vegas,

University of Arkansas, Washington State University, Texas State University, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Old Dominion University and Boise State University among others.

Athletic DepartmentIntercollegiate athletic teams at NCTC produce athletes that excel on and off the field and court.

The NCTC tennis team has the longest history of success., having made more than 25 appearances in the National JUCO Tournament, finishing as high as second.

The Lions baseball team won the 2001 JUCO National Championship and have qualified for the post-season 12 times.

The Lady Lions softball team has won conference championships in 2001 and 2008 and took home the Region V North Championship in 2009, qualifying them for the NJCAA National Tournament.

NCTC volleyball won a regional championship and advanced to the National Tournament in both 1999 and 2005.

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In the CommunityNorth Central Texas College athletes have always tried to give back to the local community by

volunteering at various events and working on special service projects.

The Lady Lions got up early on a Sunday morning to volunteer at The Sky’s the Limit Balloon Spectacular in Gainesville. It’s just one of the many community service projects they are involved in. They also volunteered at a fundraiser for Volunteers in Service to Others (VISTO) called “Murder 76240”. The live murder-mystery raised

funds for the VISTO food bank.

In the top photo, Lady Lions softball players meet with residents of Pecan Tree Health and Rehabilitation Center while decorating the halls for Halloween. In the left photo, two baseball players dress up

as bananas at The Sky’s the Limit Balloon Spectacular. In the bottom right photo, members of the NCTC volleyball team volunteered at the

Denton Heart Walk

Academic Success

North Central Texas College’s athletics teams are not only succeeding on the fields and courts, but also in the classroom.

NCTC student-athletes just completed a successful Fall 2012 semester.The four athletic teams at NCTC, which includes 72 student-athletes and managers, had an overall grade

point average (GPA) of 3.24 for the Fall semester.The Lady Lion volleyball team had the highest mark with a 3.37 GPA. Baseball and tennis were second at

3.28 and softball had a 3.07.Several individual student-athletes were honored for their exceptional work in the classroom as well.Seven NCTC athletes were named to the President’s List with a GPA of 4.0. The group included Kendall

More than a third of all NCTC athletes were named to either the President’s List or Dean’s List for the 2012 Fall semester. Some of the scholar athletes are pictured here.

NCTC athletes succeeding in classroom

Bagley (softball), Bill Bay (baseball), Jordan Chandler (tennis), Landon Darwin (baseball), Charles Deckard (baseball), Dean Fleitman (baseball) and Rachel Kidwell (softball).

Among the athletes who were named to the Dean’s List with a GPA of 3.5-3.9 were Cassidy Crawford (ten-nis), Lauren Cude (volleyball), Greg Davis (baseball), Danny Fernandez (baseball), Shannon Green (softball), Kelli Hadley (volleyball), Katie Heath (softball), Kaitlynn Henson (volleyball), Scott Hill (baseball), Harlee John-son (volleyball), Nika Juricic (tennis), Matt Michalski (baseball), Celina Ortiz (softball), Jasmine Parker (soft-ball), Alexander Pena (baseball), Danny Perez (baseball), Jaymee Ross (volleyball), Kat Strunk (softball), Clayton Vaughn (baseball) and Hailee Washburn (volleyball).

“It certainly is a nice accomplishment when more than a third of our student-athletes made either the Dean’s or President’s honors list,” NCTC athletic director Van Hedrick said. “It’s not easy to spend hours in class, at practice and competing in games and tournaments both in and out of town and still find time to get homework done and study for exams. It speaks to the dedication of the students.”

Each NCTC team has mandatory study hall hours. In addition, they are able to use the Student Success Cen-ter where they, like other students, can take advantage of free tutoring and other academic services.

The Lady Lions tennis team had three players named to either the President’s List or the Dean’s List for the Fall 2012 semester including (left to right) Nika Juricic, Jordan Chandler and Cassidy Crawford.

This is NCTCEstablished in 1924 under the leadership of Texas community college pioneer Randolph Lee Clark,

North Central Texas College is the oldest continuously operating public two-year college in the state. From its roots as a small, rural “junior” college — an extension of the local public schools actually — NCTC has grown and matured into a comprehensive, full-service community college of truly regional scope, serving students from five major campuses located across its service area. This fall, NCTC set

a new enrollment record of 10,175 students system-wide.

NCTC has campuses in Gainesville, Corinth, Flower Mound, Bowie and Graham

NCTC Tennis26 trips to National Tournament