KINGSVILLE, Texas (Tennis) – Texas A&M University-Kingsville head tennis coach
Autumn Williams announced the signing of
Valerie Ruiz to a national letter of intent Friday. Ruiz will join the Javelinas in 2016-17 and is the first tennis signee to ink an NLI during the early signing period.
Ruiz, a 5-5 student-athlete from nearby San Antonio, enters her senior season at Ronald Reagan High School as one of the area's top singles and doubles players. Throughout her high school career, she qualified for states four times and this past fall, the Rattlers defeated New Braunfels, one of the top teams in the state, for the first time ever. She is coming off a junior campaign that featured an appearance in the regional finals.
"Valerie has proven herself to be a very determined and competitive player," said Williams, the reigning Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year. "What I love most about her is her style of play and her lovable personality. She will be a great addition to this team."
The 50
th-ranked Javelinas are coming off their best season in the brief history of the program, earning their first national ranking and competing in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) South Central Regionals in September.
A complete bio on Ruiz can be found below and fans can visit
www.JavelinaAthletics.com for additional coverage of signees.
For full coverage of Texas A&M-Kingsville tennis, please follow @JavelinaTennis on Twitter and Instagram, like the official Facebook page of Javelina athletics (/JavelinaSports), and subscribe to the JavelinaAthletics YouTube channel.
Valerie Ruiz5-5, Fr./HSSan Antonio, Texas (Ronald Reagan HS)Animal Science High School: Earned four varsity letters at Ronald Reagan High School (junior and senior) and Montgomery High School (freshman and sophomore) in San Antonio… four-time state qualifier for the Rattlers… back-to-back district and regional champions at Montgomery… state semifinalist and state finalist as a freshman and sophomore, respectively… singles district champion, regional finalist, state quarter finalist as a freshman and doubles district and regional champions and state semifinalist as a sophomore… at Reagan, back-to-back district champions and as a senior, area champions and regional finalists.
Club: Played three years for Walden Racquet Club in Montgomery, Texas.
Personal: Full name is Valerie Lorraine Ruiz… born Nov. 7… daughter of Jorge and Lorraine Ruiz… has an older brother, Jorge, and two younger siblings, Vivian and Jose… aunt Pamela Tajonar was a goalie for Mexico's National Women's Soccer Team… goal is to study veterinary medicine… chose Texas A&M-Kingsville because it has an excellent animal science pre-vet program and the opportunity to compete on the tennis team… admires Roger Federer because he shows great character and is a great athlete… intends to major in animal science.
