Three senior leaders are preparing for their final spring season with the men’s tennis team, but Brad Dancer has assured there will be top-level talent ready and waiting in the wings.

A stellar effort by the Illini head coach landed three nationally ranked recruits, including No. 4-ranked blue chipper Dennis Nevolo from Valencia, Calif.

While Nevolo will not enroll until next fall, two five-star recruits, Roy Kalmanovich and Waylon Chin, are set to join the team this January.

A former member of the USA World Junior Tennis team, Chin boasts the No. 12 ranking in the class of 2008, according to tennisrecruiting.net.

Kalmanovich, who hails from Framingham, Mass., has experienced similar success early in his career and is consistently ranked among the top players in New England.

The pair of freshmen brings proven skill and potential to a lineup that is looking to make a repeat trip to the NCAA championships this spring.

“We wouldn’t have those guys coming in January if we didn’t think they’d have the opportunity to contribute right away,” Dancer said. “It’s a tough adjustment for anyone to come in in January and I think both of them have the potential to make a difference for us this year.”

Nevolo, the jewel of the incoming class, sports an impressive résumé in the junior ranks, including three finals appearances in national and international USTA events.

While the Illinois native and his fellow freshmen are sure to make an immediate impact, it was not solely their tennis skills that led Dancer to actively pursue them.

“First of all they’re all good people,” Dancer said. “They’ve got good hearts and they’re going to fit in really well in terms of that team aspect. Second of all, they’re very talented tennis players with proven results.”

Traveling the recruiting trail is largely a team effort for the Illini. Though Dancer spearheads the operation, the coach credits his current players as being excellent advocates for the program as well as the University.

“I think a lot of it is our guys selling it,” Dancer said. “Our guys that are in this program believe in the program 100 percent and they do the job of selling. I’m not such a crazy recruiter that I make all these promises or anything. I tell them what they’re going to get at Illinois and kind of leave it at that. I think the guys on our team enjoy it so much that they’re our best sellers.”

Only time will tell just how significant a role the three freshmen will play for the Illini in the future, but when it comes to raw talent the program is sure to be far from short-handed.

Fans can catch their first glimpse of this spring’s team on Jan. 18, 2008, when the Illini host Ball State at the Atkins Tennis Center.