WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - The William and Mary Athletics Department, in concert with the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), will be hosting the 2014 ITA Women's Tennis Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at the William and Mary Mason School of Business on Saturday, November 15th.
The event, which will be held in the Brinkley Commons Room, will start with a cocktail hour scheduled to begin at 6pm. A sit-down dinner and a formal ceremony that will see a prestigious six-member class inducted will follow.
The class of 2014 features two coaches (Bob Meyers, Southern Illinois and Jeff Moore, University of the Redlands (CA), University of Colorado and University of Texas) and four former players (Katrina Adams, Northwestern; Cecilia Martinez, San Francisco State; Lindsay Morse-Bennett, California-Irvine; Stacy Margolin Potter, University of Southern California). A complete bio for each can be found at the end of the release.
Betsy Nagelsen McCormack, a member of the original ITA Women's Hall of Fame Class in 1995, will be on hand to present the awards to each inductee.
Tickets for the event are $125 and available to the public. Those interested in attending can contact Raquel Babb (757.221.1599 /
rababb@wm.edu) in the William and Mary Athletics Special Events office, or visit
www.TribeClub.com and searchs the events calendar.
Click HERE to register.
The ITA Women's Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame began in 1995, to celebrate the milestones in women's collegiate tennis, from the early struggles for recognition to the achievement of full-fledged intercollegiate competition. Established by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, the Hall of Fame is operated by The College of William and Mary and is housed in the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center on the College's campus.
The Hall of Fame aspires to preserve the history and further the development of women's intercollegiate tennis through the collection of printed materials, trophies, photographs, equipment and other significant items.
The induction ceremony, beginning in 1995, honors exceptional players, coaches and contributors in women's intercollegiate tennis occurs every two years. The ITA Hall of Fame Committee selects inductees from the following categories: (1) outstanding collegiate players; (2) players who attended college and later had a significant impact on women's tennis; (3) outstanding collegiate coaches; (4) individuals or corporations playing a major role in the development of women's intercollegiate tennis.
The following are the complete bios for the class of 2014
KATRINA ADAMS, Player, Northwestern University
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Katrina Adams joined a tennis program on Chicago's West Side when she was six years old. She attended Whitney Young High School, and became Illinois High School Association singles champion in 1983 and 1984. Adams attended Northwestern University on an athletic scholarship and was named an NCAA All-American while helping the Wildcats to Big Ten championships in both 1986 and 1987. In 1987, Adams became the first African American to win the NCAA Doubles Championship with partner Diane Donnelly.
From 1988 to 1999, Adams played on the Women's Tennis Association tour where her best grand slam singles result was making it to the fourth round in the 1988 Wimbledon Championships, losing to Chris Evert. She was ranked #67 in singles in 1989 and was the singles runner-up at Wellington, New Zealand in 1988 and Brentwood, Tennessee in 1991. In 1989, she was presented the WTA Player Service Award. In 1989 Adams ranked #8 in the world in doubles, and during her 12-year professional career captured 20 doubles titles and was runner-up 16 times. Off the courts, Adams has served as a coach, member and officer of the WTA and Executive Director of the Harlem Junior Tennis and Education Program in New York. She was inducted into the USTA Midwest Section Hall of Fame in 2005 and is currently (2014) the USTA 1st Vice President. Adams is a contributing writer for Tennis Magazine and serves as a television analyst and commentator.
CECILIA MARTINEZ, Player, San Francisco State University
Cecilia “Ceci” Martinez began playing tennis at age 9 and was one of the top players in Northern California throughout her junior years. She graduated from San Francisco's Presentation High School and San Francisco State University where she was the USTA Intercollegiate Women's Singles Champion in 1966.
In November 1970, Martinez was instrumental in helping to launch the first all-women's professional tennis event — the “Virginia Slims Invitational Tour” at Westwood Club in Richmond, Virginia. Earlier at Forest Hills, women players considered boycotting Jack Kramer's Pacific Southwest tournament due to the 12:1 differential in prize money between male and female players. Martinez produced a one-page questionnaire designed to uncover the true popularity of women's tennis, and with her doubles partner, Esme Emanuel, collected surveys whose results sent a powerful message to the tennis establishment — fans liked watching women's tennis, agreed there should be equity in prize monies, and would pay to attend a women-only tournament.
During her competitive career spanning 20+ years, Martinez was ranked #1 in singles and doubles in Northern California, and nationally ranked #9 in juniors, #11 in women's singles, #4 in women's doubles, and in 1993, #11 in 35 doubles. She won tournaments in ten countries, and played in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Wimbledon and Forest Hills between 1965 and 1976. Since retiring, Martinez has been a teaching pro and tennis director in the San Francisco Bay Area, a freelance travel writer and photographer, and a real estate broker.
BOB MEYERS, Coach, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Meyers was first introduced to tennis at age five by chasing balls for his father, a tournament player in Illinois, and trying to hit them back using his mother's racquet. Although he played several sports through school, it wasn't until he was at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville that he played intramural tennis for his fraternity, Tau Kappa Epsilon. Meyers earned a bachelor's degree in physical education in 1971 and a master's in counselor education in 1972. He served as the Assistant Athletic Director and Intramural Department Head at SIUE during the early 1970s.
Meyers inaugurated the SIUE women's tennis program in 1981 and was named ITA Division II National Coach of the Year in 1983. The Cougars won four consecutive NCAA Division II Championships from 1986 to 1989, and in 1986 Meyers also became head coach of the men's team. He earned the men's ITA National Coach of the Year honor in 1988 making him the only coach in NCAA Division II tennis history to win Coach of the Year honors in both men's and women's tennis. Under his leadership, SIUE's tennis program developed into one of the best in the nation. Following the 1989 NCAA Division II Women's Team Championship title, he resigned from the university to pursue other interests. Almost 20 years later, Meyers became assistant coach for the Edwardsville High School boys' and girls' tennis teams and was honored with Assistant Coach of the Year in 2013.
JEFF MOORE, Coach, University of Redlands; University of Colorado; University of Texas
Jeff Moore was an athlete — playing football, baseball and basketball — but not a tennis player until his senior year at Holland High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He attended Knox College, then transferred to the University of Redlands to play tennis under legendary coach Jim Verdieck. After graduating in 1974, Moore became the first head coach for UR Women's Basketball and began coaching Women's Tennis in 1975. Within a year, the tennis team rose from the basement to second place in the division. In 1976, he moved to the University of Colorado where he coached men's and women's tennis. In 1982, after his women's team finished 2nd and the men's team 3rd in the Big Eight Conference, Moore became Head Coach for Women's Tennis at the University of Texas in Austin.
During his 23 years at UT, the Longhorn Women's Tennis Teams won two NCAA Division I Championships, had ten top-five finishes nationally, won 18 conference championships and boasted a 100% graduation rate. Named ITA National Coach of the Year in 1993 and Conference Coach of the Year eleven times, Moore credits his father, Bert Moore, and his UR coach, Jim Verdieck, with influencing his coaching and leadership styles. He has also coached middle and high school boys basketball and worked seven years as a teacher and administrator in independent schools. In his new career as CEO of Moore Leadership, he helps businesses and schools recruit and develop top performers. “I was extremely fortunate to have coached athletes who were driven by a purpose that transcended winning. I get chills thinking about how they pushed themselves and each other day after day!”.
LINDSAY MORSE-BENNETT, Player, University of California, Irvine
The eldest of three tennis-playing sisters, Lindsay Morse (Bennett) was born and raised in Pasadena, California. She began playing tennis at age 8 and from 11 played the junior circuit throughout California and the U.S. She was ranked #8 nationally in singles for girls 18 and under. In 1974, as a member of the Junior Wightman Cup team, she was named Player of the Year at Forest Hills. She attended the University of California, Irvine where, coached by Doreen Irish, she won the 1977 AIAW National Collegiate Singles title and earned All-American honors. That same year, Bennett represented the U.S. in Sofia, Bulgaria at the World University Games. Her 96 singles and 64 doubles wins while in college led her to become the first woman in UC-Irvine's history to be named the school's Student-Athlete of the Year.
In 1980 and 1981, Bennett played the WTA professional tour, attaining a world ranking of #39 in singles. During the 1980 season, she played in grand slams — losing in round 3 to Chris Evert at Wimbledon, to Martina Navratilova in the US Open and to Greer Stevens in the Australian Open; she also lost to Evonne Goolagong in round 3 of the Canadian Open. In 1983, Bennett was inducted into the UC Irvine Hall of Fame. In 1992 Bennett moved with her family to Lake Oswego, Oregon, where she helped coach her daughters' tennis teams to two state championships. She began working at Mountain Park Racquet Club, and in 2000 was ranked #1 in Women's 45 and Under Singles and Doubles in the Pacific Northwest.
STACY MARGOLIN POTTER, Player, University of Southern California
Born in Beverly Hills, California, Stacy Margolin (Potter) began playing tournaments when she was 10. She was ranked #6 in the 12s in Southern California and began competing nationally in the 14s, ranked #17. She was the #1 tennis singles player at Beverly Hills High School for four years, and collected many junior tennis titles before becoming the #1 singles player on the University of Southern California's Women's Varsity Team. During her freshman and sophomore years, Potter was undefeated in singles dual home matches. In 1977, she was the US 21 and Under Champion, the US Amateur Hard Court Champion, a member of the Junior Wightman Cup team, and also won gold, silver and bronze medals at the Tenth Maccabiah Games in Israel. She won the Western Regional Championships and received All-American honors in 1978 and 1979. In 1978, she was the USTA National Collegiate Singles Champion. Potter turned pro after helping USC win the national team championship in 1979.
As a professional tennis player from 1979-1987, Potter competed in 25 grand slam championships, including eight at Wimbledon, eleven at the US Open and six at the French Open, and reached a singles ranking of #18 in the world. Coming off the tour, Potter earned her master's degree in clinical psychology. She was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2004 and the Beverly Hills High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009. Now living in Ojai, CA, Potter is a certified health coach and works with her husband in their hiking, biking and climbing tour company, Trails by Potter.