MONTGOMERY, Ala. ------ Auburn University at Montgomery head tennis coach Rolando Vargas announced the addition of Claudine Maheu, Alice Baudeigne and Kelly Southwood to the women's program and Birkir Gunnarsson and Sergi Espias to the men's squad for the 2014-15 season on Monday.
"I am really excited about the addition of these five student-athletes to our roster," Vargas said. "Claudine, Alice and Kelly are each very skilled and will give us depth, but more importantly, fit the profile of the type of student-athlete that we want to bring to AUM. I am also happy to welcome Birkir and Sergi to the AUM family. They both have personalities that will fit well with our team and are quality people. With the players returning and the incoming recruits, I am anxious to see what this year will bring."
Maheu, a native of Valleyfield, Quebec, enjoyed a standout junior career in Canada, where she finished ranked fourth in Quebec. She won a pair of ITF junior doubles championships, capturing the Quebec and Edmonton title, while advancing to the singles finals of the Quebec tournament. She finished in the top 12 at the Canadian junior national championship and advanced to the semifinals of the doubles tournament last year.
"Claudine is a great left-handed player with a very good work ethic," Vargas said. "She possesses superb hands and has a beautiful slice and volley."
A Montels, France native, Baudeigne was one of the top junior players in France and participated in two tournaments, one if Biarritz and the other in Perigueux.
"Alice is a very strong player who fights for every ball," Vargas said of Baudeigne. "She has a great desire to succeed and is relentless on the court."
Southwood joins the Warhawks from Wellington, New Zealand. She began playing tennis at the age of seven and was ranked as high as 11th nationally in the under-12 division. Southwood went on to reach as high No. 8 in the New Zealand juniors rankings and 30th for all women, regardless of age. During her career she has trained with a prominent tennis academy in Bratislava, Slovakia and has competed in Austria, Belgium and throughout New Zealand.
"Kelly is an experienced player who was played all around the world," said Vargas of Southwood. "She has a very powerful serve and is extremely competitive."
A transfer from Graceland University in Lamoni, Iowa, Gunnarsson earned singles and doubles All-American honors from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association last season, after finishing ranked No. 11 in the NAIA in singles and seventh in doubles. A native of Kopavogur, Iceland, he qualified for the ITA National Small College Championships after winning the ITA Regional in Springfield, Mo. He was selected the Heart of America Athletic Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Year this past season.
"Birkir was one of the top players in the nation last year as a freshman," Vargas said of Gunnarsson. "His doubles kills are unbelievable and he is a fighter on the court. He loves a challenge and works tremendously hard, but what I like most is he shows great sportsmanship."
Espias, who comes to AUM from Barcelona, Spain, was one of the nation's top junior players and won several tournaments in Cataluna, Spain.
"Sergi is a very solid player," Vargas added. "His game will suit college tennis well because of his ambition. He loves to be on the court and gives full effort every day."
The AUM women finished the 2014 season 19-8 and advanced to the NAIA Tennis National Championship quarterfinals. The men finished 24-4 overall, including a 14-4 record against nationally-ranked opponents from the NAIA, NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III. The Warhawks reached the NAIA tournament semifinals, where they were defeated by eventual national champion Georgia Gwinnett.
