DALLAS (SMU) – SMU women's tennis coaches Kati Gyulai and Jaime Pulgar Garcia announced the signing of Isabella Tcherkes Zade to a national letter of intent on Tuesday. The Parma, Italy, native brings a wealth of international playing experience to the Mustangs.

"We are thrilled to welcome Isa and her family into our program," Gyulai said. "She portrays the values and qualities we seek in our student-athletes. We can't wait to help her grow on and off the court."

"I'm very excited to welcome Isabella to our program," Pulgar Garcia said. "She is a very mature and smart young woman. Her experience at the international level will be a great asset for our team. I see her making an immediate impact on the court and off the court."

Tcherkes Zade reached a career-high ITF (International Tennis Federation) ranking of 162 and a career-high WTA (Women's Tennis Association) doubles ranking of 819. She has won several singles and doubles titles at ITF events across Europe including France, Croatia, Russia, San Marino, Netherlands, Germany and Georgia.

The Mustangs open their spring season at home from Jan. 11-14 when they host Metroplex Mania at the SMU Tennis Complex, Turpin Stadium & Brookshire Family Pavilion.