Tuesday, 04/17/2012

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Grainne O’Neill, who hails from Blessington, Ireland, has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the Ohio State women’s tennis team beginning in 2012-13, Chuck Merzbacher, Ohio State head coach, announced Tuesday.

O’Neill is currently ranked fifth in Ireland and peaked at No. 735 in the International Tennis Federation U-18 poll earlier in her career. She twice represented her country in the Four Nations Championships, a competition between Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales, and once at the European U-18 Junior Championships. She has also been a member of the Federation Cup training squad and Ireland’s National Tennis Academy.

“We are very excited to announce the signing of Grainne O’Neill to our program,” Merzbacher. “She is one of the top singles and doubles players out of Ireland and has represented her country in many international events. She is a perfect fit for collegiate tennis because of her ability to contribute in doubles and singles. She definitely has the type of game that can flourish at the collegiate level with her ability to be strong off the baseline and finish off points at the net.”

O’Neill, the 2011 Senior National Indoor Doubles Champion of Ireland, notched U-18 national championships in singles, doubles and mixed doubles in 2010. She has also won a number of national open tournaments in both singles and doubles, including the Co. Dublin and Co. Kildare championships. In addition, she is the reigning Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club (LTC) singles title holder in 2011 and is a four-time Naas LTC singles and doubles senior champion.

“In addition to being a fine tennis player, Grainne understands the collegiate team tennis concept and the constant balance of school and athletics,” Merzbacher said.

O’Neill also competed for two national champion volleyball squads at St. Mary’s College in Naas, Ireland, where she was the recipient of the Outstanding Achievement in Sport Award and Naas Civic Award.