Aug. 2, 2001

WACO, Texas - Baylor head men's tennis coach Matt Knoll announced Thursday the signing of Barry McLaren for the 2001-2002 season.

McLaren comes to Baylor from Edinburgh, Scotland, where he compiled a 4.0 grade point average attending high school at George Watson's College. Ranked as one of the top 10 players in Great Britain, McLaren is currently recovering from an elbow injury that has sidelined him for over a year. Knoll expects McLaren to be fully rehabilitated by mid-August. The newest Bear chose Baylor's tennis program over Arkansas.

"A lot depends on how he recovers from this injury, but there's no question he has the potential to make a real contribution to the program this year," Knoll said, "and I'm excited about where he can be in two or three years. He's got a big frame [6-2, 170 pounds] and an aggressive style. We can do a lot of things to help him improve. I look forward to working with him."

McLaren joins three previous signees in Markus Hornung, Benjamin Becker and Armando Carrascosa. Martin Hehensteiger, who signed with the Bears in April, has instead decided to turn pro and will therefore not be joining the team this fall.