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The Countdown to Signing Day is underway here at TennisRecruiting.net, which might motivate some junior players to work even harder to elevate their games. We check in with a few notable performers of last month - in another edition of the Hot 100.

The Hot 100 lists are published each month, and the March Hot 100 lists feature the one hundred boys and girls who most improved their rankings during the month of February. You can find out more about the Hot 100 - and how the lists are calculated - by reading here.

The latest lists, published yesterday, are available here:

• Boys' Hot 100
• Girls' Hot 100

Let's take a look at some of these top performers ...

Roundup

Samuel Komis (Buffalo Grove, Ill.)

Three-star junior Samuel Komis got into tennis through his father, Alex Komis, at the age of six. His father served as his primary coach until age ten. "I attribute much of my success in the younger age divisions to his intense and demanding coaching style," Samuel Komis said.

Not long after, however, Komis experienced a series of injuries that caused him to miss a lot of time on the court. Upon his recovery, he struggled returning to the sport.

"Sam lost his feel for the ball and had a long period of mental blocks inhibiting his return to his previous level," Alex Komis said. "He stopped competing in tournaments for over two years, causing him to miss basically all of the boy 14s/16s divisions."

Samuel Komis experimented playing with his left hand and playing with both hands, but nothing seemed to work. "Most kids would quit tennis, but Sam is not a quitter. He tried again and again," Alex Komis said.

It was around this time that Komis met coach Misha Chaduneli, who was a literal game-changer for him. She patiently worked with him on basics again and got him back on his feet.

Now, Komis credits his growth to his current coach, Bill Heiser, who accepted him into his high performance group, where he trains with top level players.

"I credit my recent improvement to the high intensity of my practices," Komis said. "I have been very motivated to approach each practice with a desire to improve, and this has shown in my good tournament results lately."

Highlights of Komis's last month of tennis include reaching the consolation semifinals of USTA Midwest Level 3 in Elkhorn, Wisc., and winning the Midtown Athletic Club Challenger.

The six-foot player considered his best win to be a match that came at a USTA Midwest Level 2 in Okemos, Mich. He met fellow three-star junior Alan Arocho early on in the tournament. Komis lost the first set 4-6, but came back to win six straight games in the second set and the third set tiebreaker, 10-4. "This match boosted my confidence through my next several tournaments," he said.

Komis has overcome many challenges over his athletic career, and this motivates his plans for his future. As a junior, he is thinking about college. "I hope to find a college that offers a strong academic program as well as a competitive tennis team that I can grow with," he said.