Northwestern State’s tennis program added two players in its signing class for the 2023-24 season, head coach Jonas Brobeck announced Wednesday. 

Honoka Umeda, a native of Kumamoto-Shi, Japan, has a 256 ITF ranking, while Sara Erenda is ranked in the top 5 in her native Austria in her age-group and has a top 15 women’s national ranking. 

“We are very excited to have Sara and Honoka join us for the fall of 2023,” Brobeck said. “They are both great people and players who will fit perfectly into our team and culture. 

“Further, with their values of hard work, a team-first mentality and eagerness to develop and get better, they will help take this team to the next level and continue to compete for Southland Championships. We can’t wait to have them on campus in August.” 

Umeda has an 8.75 universal tennis rating with a high of 9.20 and competed in the 2022 Junior Wimbledon. 

Erenda, a native of Tyrol, Austria, is a two-time doubles national champion and was a regional champion in singles several times. She has a universal tennis rating of 8.4 with a high of 9.18. 

NSU won the SLC regular season title in the spring of 2022 and aim to repeat in the 2023 season, which begins Jan. 21 at TCU.