July 29, 2015 WACO, Texas - Baylor women's tennis head coach Joey Scrivano announced the addition of three student-athletes, Gabriela Ferreira, Rhiann Newborn and Elizabeth Profit to his 2015-16 roster Wednesday.
All three athletes will be eligible to compete for the Bears during the 2015-16 season.
"These young ladies are team players, high character people, hard workers, and I'm personally proud to welcome them to the Baylor family," Scrivano said. "This group has the intangibles to grow while making an impact immediately. There will be a learning curve, transitioning from junior tennis to NCAA tennis. It will be a challenge, but I know this group will be able to rise to the occasion. These are the kind of young people we want to have on our team, and I'm excited for their future."
 | Elizabeth Profit | Freshman | Lomita, Calif.
Profit, a five-star blue chip recruit according to tennisrecruiting.net, remained in the site's top-20 recruits throughout her four-year high school career. She advanced to the quarterfinals of the USTA National Winter Championships with an upset of third-ranked recruit Ellie Douglas in the round of 16. Currently, Proffit is ranked No. 933 in the world by the ITF and has won nine career ITF Pro Circuit main draw matches. She chose Baylor over UCLA and USC. SCRIVANO ON PROFIT
"Elizabeth is such a highly-skilled player. What's so impressive about her is her character and she has great intangibles. She really is the total package. She has the ability to play first-strike offensive tennis. That's the way you win big in college tennis." PROFIT ON BAYLOR
"Being a Baylor Bear is amazing. My experience so far has been awesome. Ultimately, I chose Baylor because of the sense of family I felt when I first came here. I'm just proud to be a Baylor Bear." |
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 | Rhiann Newborn | Junior | Houston, Texas
Newborn, a transfer from Syracuse University, produced an 18-19 record during freshman and sophomore seasons with the Orange. She played primarily in the No. 3 spot in 2015, while going 11-9 in singles action. Newborn arrived at Syracuse as a five-star recruit and ranked 30th in the country according to Tennis Recruiting Network. She concluded her junior career with a No. 1 ranking in the Gulf Coast Region and in Texas. SCRIVANO ON NEWBORN
"Rhiann is a dynamic athlete, and brings two years of experience playing in the ACC with her. She's proven she can compete with the top players in the nation. Everyone I talked to at Syracuse about her only had admiration for her. She has a really great work ethic, high character and lots of upside." NEWBORN ON BAYLOR
"Becoming a Baylor Bear is a true honor. I never imagined wearing the Green & Gold, but now it's a reality. I'm so excited that I will be a part of this amazing program with such great tradition. I chose Baylor because of the outstanding academics, beautiful campus and supportive people on campus. I'm closer to home, which is important for me. Now, my family can come up to visit and watch me play more often." |
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 | Gabriela Ferreira | Freshman | Asuncion, Paraguay
Ferreira has a current singles ranking of No. 1154 from the ITF and has amassed a 12-14 mark in the ITF Pro Circuit main draw matches. She advanced to the quarterfinals of the $10,000 Pro Circuit event in El Trebol, Argentina last summer. SCRIVANO ON FERREIRA
"Gabi brings a positive attitude with lots of enthusiasm in everything she does. She has a great attitude, tremendous work ethic and has a solid tennis game. Every championship team has a player like her on it." FERREIRA ON BAYLOR
"I'm very proud to be a Baylor Bear. Being a part of the Baylor family is a dream come true. I'm very fortunate to have an opportunity like this. I feel so comfortable here with my coaches, professors and supportive staff. They are amazing people all over this campus that want to help you succeed. "I chose Baylor because I wanted to be a part of the incredible winning tradition. I could see that this was a place where I could grow as a tennis player but more importantly as a person." |
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All three players will join a Baylor team that finished last year ranked No. 8, after compiling a 28-7 record and making the NCAA Quarterfinals for the sixth time in program history and advancing past the NCAA second round for the 10th time in the last 11 years. The Lady Bears won both the Big 12 regular season and tournament titles in 2015 to give the program 19 conference titles.
To stay current on all things Baylor Women's Tennis, follow the team on Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorWTennis.
