Upcoming Event: Women's Tennis versus ITA All-American Championship on September 20, 2025
Women's Tennis
vs ITA All-American Championship
Ashworth Introduces Class of 2019
11/26/2014 2:51:00 PM | Women's Tennis
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke women's tennis head coach Jamie Ashworth announced the team's 2015 recruiting class Wednesday, comprised of three top-10 prospects in Kaitlyn McCarthy, Jessica Ho and Ellyse Hamlin.
“We could not be happier to welcome Kaitlyn, Ellyse and Jessica to the Duke family,” Ashworth said. “This is a monumental signing class for our program and these three will undoubtedly enable our team to continue being successful and compete for championships. The pride and passion for Duke that each has shown individually and collectively as a group has been incredible to see and will only help forge their impact on our program. Both on and off the court, Ellyse, Jessica and Kaitlyn will be a tremendous asset to the Duke women's tennis team and to the entire Duke community. We cannot wait for them to arrive on campus early next fall and start their Duke careers.”
McCarthy, who ranks second in the nation among tennisrecruiting.net's Top 100 Girls' Class of 2015, owns a career juniors singles record of 47-23. Over her juniors career, McCarthy has won the U18 Canadian World Ranking Event in Montreal, while also playing into the final round of numerous tournaments, including the Pan American ITF in Tulsa, Okla., the International Grass Court Championships in Haverford, Pa., and the South Carolina ITF in Columbia, S.C. This season, McCarthy reached the quarterfinal round of both the Easter Bowl Championship held in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and the USTA International Spring Championships in Carson, Calif.
On the professional circuit, McCarthy most recently reached the quarterfinal round of the $10,000 Evansville, Ind. McCarthy, a member of the Cary Tennis Park Academy, hails from Cary, N.C.
“The deciding factor between my final two schools was that Duke is closer to home, and a lot of my family lives here,” McCarthy said. “My sister also went here. My parents live close to the area, about 20 minutes away. I am a family person, and I wanted to stay close to home. Also, the other things such as the coaches, players, teammates and teachers are all really great.”
Similar to singles, McCarthy posted impressive play in doubles action, including earning a doubles crown at the Easter Bowl Championship event while paired with Mary Hafey. McCarthy concluded doubles play in 2013 by playing into the final round of the Metropolia Orange Bowl International Championships while teamed with Sofia Kenin.
Ho, tennisrecruiting.net's sixth-ranked prospect, joins Duke with an overall juniors singles record of 46-35. Earlier this year, Ho played into the finals of both the Biesterbos Open 2014 held in Castricum, Netherlands and the Daytona Beach tournament in Daytona Beach, Fla. Ho also reached the semifinal round of the Argentina Cup in Cordoba, Argentina and advanced to the quarterfinal round of both the Easter Bowl Championship in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and the USTA International Spring Championships in Carson, Calif. Over her juniors career, Ho advanced to the quarterfinal round of a tournament five times.
In addition to singles, Ho saw success on the juniors circuit in doubles competition. Ho won the Copa Gatorade 2014 doubles main draw while paired with Anna Blinkova. Ho also participated in the final alongside Paula Perez-Garcia at the Argentina Cup in Cordoba, Argentina and she appeared in numerous semifinal round competitions, including U18 Canadian World Ranking Event in Montreal, Canada, the Allianz Kundler German Juniors supported by Optimal Systems in Berlin, Germany, and the USTA International Spring Championships in Carson, Calif., among others.
"I decided on Duke because of the great coaching staff, the team and the outstanding academics," Ho said. "I am super excited to be part of the student body next year."
Duke's third top-10 prospect, eighth-ranked Hamlin, currently owns a juniors circuit singles record of 34-20. Hamlin's highest singles performances of 2014 include semifinal round finishes at both the Claremont ITF in Claremont, Calif., and the Inka Bowl in Lima, Peru. In 2012, Hamlin played through the singles main draw of the Copa Mangu tournament in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, reaching the finals of the event.
In her most recent doubles appearance at the Pan American ITF, Hamlin saw final round action alongside Helen Altick in Tulsa, Okla., the second time she reached the finals of a tournament in 2014, with the first coming at the Condor De Plata 2014 in La Paz, Bolivia while playing with Nicole Frenkel. Hamlin also appeared in six semifinal round doubles matches throughout her juniors career.
“When I first came here, the campus was obviously amazing,” Hamlin said. “The campus population and the campus was smaller, so having everything so close together helped me decide to go here. I went to a couple of other schools and I didn't like how they were so spread out. The coaches, Jamie and Mark, and the girls on the team are all amazing, and the academics of course.”
#GoDuke
Players Mentioned
PLAYER
/ Women's Tennis
PLAYER
/ Women's TennisEleana Yu Post Match vs. Auburn
Saturday, May 10
Jame Ashworth Post Match vs. Auburn
Saturday, May 10
Ellie Coleman Post Match vs. FAU
Saturday, May 03
Jamie Ashworth Post Match vs. FAU
Saturday, May 03
