Johnson signs letter of intent with Arizona

Hailey Johnson has signed a letter of intent to play tennis at the University of Arizona.

The Oasis High School senior, who spent four seasons on Fallbrook High School’s girls tennis team, signed the collegiate letter of intent Nov. 10 at Oasis.

“I’m really excited. I’m basically counting down the days until I get to go. I think I’m going to have a really good time with the team, and I really like the coaches,” Johnson said.

Johnson won the 2010 Avocado East League singles championship and reached the semifinals of the CIF individual tournament. Johnson and her sister, Michaela, advanced to the finals of the 2009 CIF doubles tournament.

“We’re certainly excited to have Hailey,” said Arizona coach Vicky Maes.

“Hailey is obviously a solid player. We think she has a lot of potential to improve even in college,” Maes said. “We have full confidence that she’ll improve even more before she gets here.”

Johnson was also considering San Diego State University, the University of San Diego, St. Mary’s, the University of Hawaii, Texas Christian University, and Wake Forest. (In the CIF semifinals Johnson lost to Karen Forman, who will be playing for Wake Forest.) Johnson intends to major in journalism; she hopes to have an eventual position with the Tennis Channel and is also potentially interested in coaching collegiate tennis. Johnson has existing coaching experience helping out at junior camps.

The coaching staff and team were among the top reasons Johnson selected Arizona. “I really got along with them,” she said.

“It’s a really exciting time for our program,” Maes said.

Arizona’s conference affiliation was another factor in Johnson’s consideration. “Being at a PAC-10 school has been one of my biggest goals,” she said.

The PAC-10 will become the PAC-12 for 2011-12 when Utah and Colorado join the Pacific Athletic Conference. The existing members include UCLA and USC. “I’m glad I’ll get to play a lot of matches in SoCal,” Johnson said. “My family can come and

watch.”

Johnson was 7 years old when she began playing tennis and entered her first tournament at that age. She played no other sports in high school, and after 2 1/2 years at Fallbrook High School she transferred to Oasis so that she could take advantage of the independent study program. Johnson, a Bonsall resident, attended Zion Lutheran School through eighth grade.

Johnson spent four years on Fallbrook’s varsity. “Her getting the call from U of A, I think, was a really cool thing for all the hard work she’s done over the years,” said Fallbrook coach Dave Ramirez. “We’re excited about her being part of U of A.”

Johnson noted that her Fallbrook High School highlights included playing in the CIF finals with her sister. “That was probably like one of the greatest memories,” she said.

“This has all been awesome, but this is not the end,” Johnson said of her high school career. “There’s a lot more to come.”

Johnson will continue to play U.S. Tennis Association tournaments. “This will not be the last of me,” she said. “I’m going to be around for a while.”

She’ll be in Tucson for much of the next four years, but Johnson will return to Southern California for collegiate road matches and tournaments.

“I feel like I’m just getting started,” she said.

To comment on this story online, visit http://www.thevillagenews.com.