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College Commitment
Countdown: Kline Chooses the Paladins
by Ali Jones, 15 October 2008

Lauren Kline grew up on the tennis court - literally.

For as long as she can remember, Lauren has been hitting tennis balls and toddling on-court. That's because her parents are both accomplished tennis players as well as teaching professionals. Dad Larry is club director and head professional at the Louisville Tennis Club, and mom Susan also teaches at the club. Both parents played on their respective college teams while at the University of Kentucky. Needless to say, tennis is the family business and Lauren is a major investor and stockholder who is expanding the franchise from Louisville to Greenville, where she will soon join the Paladins of Furman University.

And as with most thriving businesses, the move has been voted on and overwhelmingly approved by the family. The family's support and excitement at Lauren's choice was evident early this fall, when TennisRecruiting.net caught up with them at Furman. Along with grandparents Ruth and Carl Kline, the family was cheering on Lauren's prospective teammates at the 22nd Furman Fall Classic where seven women's tennis teams ranked in the top 40 competed at the Mickel Tennis Center. They also took in a bit of football, watching the Paladins' resounding win over Chattanooga 35-10.

"I can't wait to go to college," Lauren said. "I love Furman not just for the tennis, but also because it is academically strong, which is very important to me."

Lauren also looked at Ohio State, Wisconsin, LSU and Virginia Tech. But when she went to Furman to play her sectional Bullfrog tournament in the spring, she simply fell in love with Furman. The 750-acre campus was stunning. Its academic reputation is topnotch and the tennis team was a place she knew she could thrive and be a winning member.