Pope Accepts Indiana’s Tennis Offer

Former Nordhoff High tennis player Derek Pope has signed a letter of intent to Indiana. Now a senior at Lake Mary (Fla.) High who has spent the past year attending the Amre Sammakia Tennis Academy there, Pope said he wanted to sign early and enjoy his senior year of high school competition.

“It’s like a piano was taken off my back,” Pope said. “Now I can just go out and play and not have to stress over my ranking.”

Pope was contacted by more than 80 schools before narrowing his choices to Florida, SMU, Arizona and Clemson along with the Hoosiers.

“Indiana had the best all-around environment,” Pope said. “I like the town and the campus is beautiful. I like the coach and the players. And the facilities--it has 16 indoor courts. They pamper their athletes and I’m honored to have the opportunity to go there.”

Pope’s father, Karl, played basketball at USC and his mother, Paula Jean, was a three-time Olympic diver who also attended USC. But Pope said he never considered following his parents’ footsteps.

Pope, 17, and Notre Dame-bound doubles partner Jakob Pietrowski won the U.S. Tennis Assn. national clay court championship last summer and are currently ranked No. 1 in the nation in 18-and-under doubles.

Pope also was an outstanding basketball player at Nordhoff before withdrawing and heading to Florida last year with three games remaining in the season. He averaged 21 points and 15 rebounds.