DES MOINES, Iowa – Second year head Drake University women's tennis coach Mai-Ly Tran announced the addition of four student-athletes for the 2018-19 season on Thursday, May 17.
 
Set to join the Bulldogs in the fall are high school standouts Kelsey Neville (Antioch, Ill.) and Daria Walczak (Lodz, Poland) and transfers Sophia Haleas (Clarendon Hill, Ill.) and Carmen Palumbo (McLean, Va)., who will all add depth to the reining Missouri Valley Conference regular season champions.
 
"I'm excited to welcome our 2018 incoming class to the Bulldog family. This group of exceptional young women will undoubtedly bring great talent and energy to future of the program," said Tran
 
Neville helped lead Antioch Community High School to back-to-back Illinois Class 1A sectional championships. She was a four-time state qualifier and finished in fourth-place as a junior and sixth as a senior. Neville garnered first team all-state honors during her final two seasons. She is ranked the 22nd best player in the tennis rich state of Illinois by TennisRecruiting.net.
 
"I am looking forward to having Kelsey on the roster. She's a talented player who is excited about the direction the program is headed and is eager to begin her collegiate career at Drake," said Tran.
 
Walczak is ranked the 16th best player in Poland. She was a regional champion in doubles and singles and won singles and doubles titles in the U18 National Tournament. Walczak advanced to the finals in the women's national tournament as well.
 
"Daria is extremely athletic and talented. I'm eager for her arrival from Poland this fall and looking forward to helping her transition to life at Drake as well as build off of her immense success as a junior player," said Tran.
 
Haleas is transferring from Utah State and will have two years of eligibility at Drake. She posted an 18-8 singles record and 14-7 doubles record for the Aggies. As a prep, Haleas was ranked a four-star recruit by TennisRecruiting.net and led Hinsdale Central High School to three IHSA State team championships.
 
"Sophia is a fierce competitor who will bring new depth to our team. I believe that her positive energy and tenacity will make for an easy transition to Drake and we're excited for her to make a big impact on our squad," said Tran.
 
Palumbo is transferring from North Dakota and will have three years of eligibility at Drake. As a freshman, Palumbo posted an 8-11 singles record at the Fighting Hawks top singles spot and 7-11 at No. 1 doubles. She earned the last Big Sky Conference Tennis Player of the Week award on the season.
 
"Carmen is a driven young woman who will make an impactful contribution to our starting line-up. With a very successful freshman year behind her, I'm excited for her to build from that great momentum and have continued success as a Bulldog," said Tran.
 
The four newcomers will join the team in the fall that returns five players from this year's squad.