The Eastern softball, volleyball and tennis teams all added multiple signees for next year.

Head softball coach Kim Schuette will have four new faces on her team next season, as three high school signees and a junior college transfer will join the team.

First baseman/outfielder Kylie Bennett will join the team after being a four-year starter at Lincoln Way Central High School in New Lenox. As well as being the team captain, Bennett was also an all-state, all-area and all-conference player, batting .490 and hitting 11 home runs.

Also joining the Panthers will be outfielder Jennette Isaac of West Salem High School in Oregon, Ill. Isaac, who also played guard for her high school’s basketball team, was a three time all-conference player.

Outfielder/short stop April Markowski will also look to take her talents to Eastern next season, as the two-time all-conference player will sign with the Panthers. Also a starter on the East Leyden High School volleyball team, Markowski played summer ball for the Chicago White Sox Training Academy Summer Team.

After playing at Rantoul High School and then playing at Heartland Community College, pitcher Hanna Mennenga will join the Panthers next season. Mennenga was ranked third in the IHSA with 404 strikeouts and once recorded a school record 21 consecutive strikeouts in one game. During her time at Heartland, Mennenga earned Second Team All-American honors as a freshman and was named Pitcher and Region Player of the Year.

Schuette said Mennega is going to step right in to the Eastern pitching rotation.

“We plan for her to step right in on the mound and fit right in with our team,” she said, in a press release.

After a disappointing 11-20 finish, head volleyball coach Kate Price has added three additional players for next season.

“I am very excited about our 2012 incoming class so far,” Price said, in a press release. “All three kids coming in could potentially arrive and make an immediate impact right away as Chelsea, Kayla and Stephanie will each bring something different to our team.

Coming to the Panthers all the way from Menomonee Falls, Wisc., is Chelsea Lee. Lee is a 5-foot-10-inch outside hitter, who chose Eastern despite attention from other colleges, such as Buffalo, Miami (Ohio), Miami (Florida), and Bowling Green.

Another player making a trip to join the Panthers will be Kayla Nesbitt of Mattawan, Mich. Nesbitt was recruited by other schools such as New Hampshire, Ohio, Cornell, and Eastern Michigan, and will look to make an impact on the Panther roster.

The only Illinois signee for the Panthers so far will be Stephanie Wallace, who comes to Charleston from Wesclin. Wallace is the younger sister of senior Brittany Wallace, who is the Ohio Valley Conference era dig leader for the Panthers.

“I am thrilled that Stephanie gets to be part of something that has been such a wonderful experience for me,” Wallace said in a press release.

The Eastern tennis team has added one player to its men’s team and two to its women’s team.

Robert Skolik will come to the Panther men’s team from Huntington, W.Va., while owning a Top 3 USTA ranking in the Ohio Valley District.

He is also No. 61 in the Midwest Section rankings.

“We’re really excited to add Robert to our team in the fall of 2012,” Eastern head coach John Blackburn said, in a press release. “He has proven results at both the USTA and high school tennis level, yet I feel he has the drive and focus to improve greatly in his senior year and will continue that trend once he arrives here at EIU.”

For the women’s team, the Panthers will add Alex Curtis of Tampa, Fla., and Ali Foster of Plainfield.

“We’re very excited to be adding Ali and Alex to the team next year,” Blackburn said, in a press release. “Alex is a rapidly improving player who is really starting to collect some nice wins in Florida, which is one of the toughest regions in the country for USTA tennis.”

Blackburn also said that Foster can make an immediate impact for the team, based on her high school performances.

“Ali has been a very consistent performer in the IHSA over the past three seasons and has collected a lot of great results,” he said, in a press release.

Dominic Renzetti can be reached at 581-7942 or [email protected].