ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

Eliane Hess

School: Cape Central

Sport: Tennis

Coach: Annette Slattery

This season: Hess, a senior foreign exchange student from Switzerland, is the Tigers' No. 1 singles player. She has established herself as the top player in Southeast Missouri, with a 6-1 record, including a 4-0 record in dual matches. In those four dual victories, Hess has not lost a game. Hess was 2-1 in the Great Eight Tournament in Columbia against some of the best competition in the state. She defeated John Burroughs' Jackie Mendillo 6-2, 6-0, Joplin's Erin Rosenberg (one of the top prep players in Missouri last year) 7-6, 6-4 and lost to St. Joseph Academy's Kiki Statsny 6-3, 6-1.

Week report: Hess defeated Heather Winston 8-0 in Central's 9-0 victory over Kennett, and beat Annie Lefebvre in Central's 8-1 win over Jackson.

Coach's comments: When she walked onto the team this year, her strokes were so beautiful, smooth and fluid, I knew she would be a varsity player. She has such a wide variety of shots, but I think her greatest strength is her mental game and her quickness.