Sept. 21, 2006
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State men's tennis team paid tribute Wednesday to the late Dontia Haynes in a special ceremony at Aztec Tennis Center (ATC). Haynes' sister Angela presented Aztec head coach Gene Carswell with the racquet and court shoes used by the former SDSU tennis star. The items will be on display as a memorial in the operations building of the ATC.
A transfer from UC Irvine, Haynes played two seasons on Montezuma Mesa from 2004-05 and was an integral part of an Aztec squad that captured both the Mountain West Conference regular season and tournament titles in 2005. That season, Haynes received all-MWC accolades in doubles, teaming with partner Daniel Jung. In the MWC tournament final against Brigham Young, the Aztec duo clinched the pivotal doubles point in a 4-2 SDSU triumph, helping the scarlet and black secure an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament. Haynes was an accomplished singles player as well, earning a No. 84 ranking by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) in 2004.
In addition to his on-court success, Haynes also excelled in the classroom, garnering MWC all-academic honors in 2004.
Angela Haynes, meanwhile, is a successful tennis player as well, competing professionally on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. She received a high singles ranking of 95 in 2005 and a high of 101 in doubles competition in 2006.
Dontia Haynes died in a motorcycle accident, Sept. 23, 2005, in San Diego.