Prep’s Featherston picks North Carolina

From the moment she stepped onto St. Francis Prep’s Fresh Meadows campus, Shinann Featherston has carved out a marvelous tennis career for herself.
Following her two older sisters Ellenoira and Martina - both of whom are on the Fordham tennis team - she has won three individual Mayor’s Cup titles, broke into the top 10 of the USTA national junior rankings, and continued the Terriers winning dynasty, helping to extend their unbeaten dual match streak to an unfathomable 138 and counting.
Next fall, the Rockaway Park resident will look to further her career hundreds of miles south at a burgeoning program. Featherston recently gave a verbal agreement to the University of North Carolina. Under first-year coach Brian Kalbas, the Tar Heels advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals and were ranked as high as No. 3 in the nation, a program first.
“The ACC is getting very strong in tennis, so I think it’s a perfect fit,” St. Francis Prep tennis coach John Brennan said. “She likes the coach, she likes the team, and the ACC is arguably one of the best conferences for women’s tennis in the country right now.”
“UNC had the total package,” said Featherston, who also visited Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and Vanderbilt. “I just like the overall atmosphere, the coaching was great, the academics are really great, and the area is not too far, only an hour and a half flight, an eight-hour drive, just the whole picture.
“They just have everything I could possibly need.”
“I’m not really sure yet where I’m going to be playing,” she added, “but the coaches are really impressed with my game, and he (Kalbas) said he was really willing to work with me to become the greatest player possible.”