Nov. 16, 2007
Orlando, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - With the early signing period underway, the UCF softball team announced the signing of four future Knights to National Letters of Intent Friday. The student-athletes set to join UCF next fall include infielders Olivia Alvarez (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) and Natalie Land (Mayo, Fla./Lafayette), and outfielders Tenisha Dixon (New Port Richey, Fla./J.W. Mitchell) and Fachon Jones (Pittsburg, Calif./Pittsburg).
"My coaching staff and I are extremely excited about our recruiting class this year," head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie said. "This group of ladies will be a key component to our success as a team in a very competitive Conference USA, and will pave the way for the future of the UCF softball program. They bring tremendous speed and versatility to the squad as we continue to move our program forward."
Natalie Land - SS
Mayo, Fla./Lafayette
Land participated in three sports at Lafayette High School, lettering in softball, basketball and softball. She is a four-time Gainesville Sun Player of the Year in both softball and basketball, and received first team all-state honors four-straight years in both sports. In 2007, Land helped her softball team to the 2A State Final Four and was voted the 2007 Dairy Farmers Player of the Year. In addition to her on-field accomplishments, Land maintains a 4.0 cumulative grade point average, is number one in her class, and is Vice President of Lafayette High's student council.
Olivia Alvarez - 2B/3B
Coconut Grove, Fla./Gulliver Prep
Alvarez enters her senior season at Gulliver Prep School in Miami, Fla., where she earned first team All-Dade County honors the past two seasons as part of the softball team, as well as being named to the second team as a freshman. She was a member of the Puerto Rican Junior National Team, playing in the 2006 Junior Pan-Am Games and the 2006 World Games. In the summer of 2007, the Toms River, N.J., native competed in the 2007 Pan-Am Games as a member of the Puerto Rican National Team.
Tenisha Dixon - OF
New Port Richey, Fla./J.W. Mitchell
Dixon will graduate in May from J.W. Mitchell High School where she is a member of the Spanish National Honor Society, and earned all-conference honors in both academics and athletics. A recipient of her teams' Coach's award, Dixon is a member of the Florida Ultimate Gold and posts a batting average of .689.
Fachon Jones - OF
Pittsburg, Calif./Pittsburg
Jones has lettered in softball, wrestling, track and field and cheerleading at Pittsburg High School in Pittsburg, Calif. She was an All-Bay Valley Athletic League softball selection as an outfielder in 2006 and batted .388 as a junior. She is a member of the travel organization Nor Cal Shockers. As a member of the wrestling team, she finished second in her conference in 2006 and seventh in the state in her weight class. In 2007, she finished first in her conference and fifth in the state in her weight class.
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