Amateur Career: Ranked as high as No. 54 in Germany... runner-up in singles and third place in doubles in the German Junior Championship... reached the quarterfinals at the $10,000 Stockholm Challenger... participated with the German Federation Team and the European Team.

Personal: Valerie Meise... goal for the season is to play her best tennis... chose USF for the great academics and the beautiful city... favorite quote is "Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you"... would like to be the Dalai Lama for a day... would like to go to the Australian Open one day... favorite sports hero is Roger Federer... favorite movie is Notting Hill... favorite book is "Tuesdays with Morrie"... favorite foods are pasta and salad... enjoys traveling and hanging out with friends and her dog, Apple, in her spare time... parents are Ruedeger and Barbara Meise... born March 25, 1986 in Bielefeld, Germany.

Coach Somers' Take

Tennis: At the age of 19 she is one of the best tennis players in Germany. She was the girls champion U14 in Germany in 2000. Her best WTA ranking was 943 and she played some tournaments on tour in 2003/2004 . Her best ranking in Germany was 54. She was the runner-up in singles and 3rd place in doubles in the German Junior Championships. She had an impressive showing at the $10,000 Stockholm Challenger making it to the quarterfinals. She participated with the German Federation Team and European Team.

Personal:If she could be anyone for a day she would be the Dalai Lama. She has some great advice to give indicating that everybody is born with a certain potential. You may never achieve your fullest potential, but how close you come depends on how much you want to pay the price. The most impressive person she has ever met is our very own USF Reverend, Father Stephen Privett.

Future ambitions: Valerie wants to become a sports marketing manager, maybe at the Australian Open, since that is her favorite sporting event in the world.