University of Tennessee Athletics
Australian Duo Added to Tennis Vols 2005 Signing Class
January 12, 2005 | Men's Tennis
Jan. 12, 2005
Tennessee's men's tennis team has signed two Australians for the spring 2005 season. Kaden Hensel and Morgan Wilson arrived in Knoxville last week and join fellow newcomer Bobby Cameron to form one of Tennessee's most highly acclaimed recruiting classes.
"Our mid-semester freshman class of Bobby, Kaden and Morgan looks to be a very strong one," men's acting head tennis coach Chris Mahony said. "These three players are a great addition to the squad of eight we already had in the fall."
Morgan Wilson hails from Brisbane, Australia, the same hometown as Mahony. Wilson brings an impressive resume to the Hill. He has participated in several professional tournaments as an amateur and at the end of 2002 had an ATP entry ranking of 668. During his time in juniors Wilson rose to as high as No. 3 in Australian Boys' 18s singles rankings and defeated many former college All-Americas.
"Morgan brings a lot of experience and maturity to our team," Mahony said. "He was one of Australia's best 18-and-under juniors and has a lot of international experience."
Kaden Hensel is from Mudgeeraba, Australia and has won many tournaments in junior tennis including the 2004 Gold Coast Closed title. He was also named the 2003-04 Tennis Gold Coast Player of the Year.
"I'm very excited about Kaden. He brings an enormous amount of potential to the court," Mahony said. "He's 6-foot-4 and once he grows into his game he will be extremely dangerous."
The third member of the 2005 signing class is Bobby Cameron. A Lenoir City native, Cameron has been ranked as high as No. 1 in the Boys' 18-and-under division in the state of Tennessee, No. 12 in the nation and No. 29 in the world. He has won numerous tournaments in junior tennis, including the Boys' 16 National Clay Court Championships, the Southern Designated Boys' 18 Championships, and the USTA SuperNational Clay Court Championships.
The three combine to carry heavy expectations from their coach.
"I expect all three to compete for starting spots in our SEC lineup," Mahony said. "More importantly, I expect all three to be quality student-athletes who represent the University of Tennessee in a positive manner."
Tennessee now boasts a roster of 11 student-athletes, comprising five from the United States (all from Tennessee) two each from Australia and South Africa and one from England and New Zealand. The squad will see its first action of the year starting Thursday at the SEC Indoor Championships in New Orleans, La.
