GSC announces 2017 All-Conference Men's Tennis
Birmingham, Ala. — The Gulf South Conference announced its annual All-GSC Men's Tennis honors on Wednesday as both UWF and VSU paced all teams with four honorees each.
Eight different countries made up this year's 16-member All-GSC Men's Tennis Team, including Sweden, France, Brazil, South Africa, Germany, Spain, Argentina and Finland. Both
West Florida and
Valdosta State led all schools, placing four student-athletes each on the squad. The Argonauts, the 2017 GSC Men's Regular Season- and Tournament Champions, had all four named to the First Team.
North Alabama and
Mississippi College each placed three members on this year's annual list, while both
Lee and
West Alabama rounded out the team, with one each.
GSC Co-Players of the Year
Valdosta State junior
Leo Blay and
West Florida senior
Alex Peyrot both garnered
GSC Co-Players of the Year laurels. Blay, honored as such for the second-consecutive season, went 12-3 in No. 1 singles this season. The 2015 GSC Freshman of the Year, helped guide his ITA nationally-ranked No. 5 VSU squad to a 15-5 record, including 8-1 in league-play, and a berth to the 2017 NCAA Division II Men's Tennis Tournament as the three-seed. He was 2-0 against nationally-ranked opponents, 5-1 in league play and, along with doubles partners Xavier Pineda, Davis Stewart and Valentin Mounoto, went 11-7. He is currently ranked as the ITA No. 10 singles player, nationally, while he and Pineda are a combined 9-6 in doubles play and were previously ranked as the No. 24 team in the country for three months. The Nice, France, native is currently riding an 11-match winning streak heading into the NCAA DII postseason. Peyrot, the No. 4 singles player in all of NCAA Division II was 15-4 this season, including 11-3 in No. 1 singles. The duo of Peyrot and Pedro Dumont, currently rank No. 1 in the nation, and are 21-2 on the year. The Castelnaudary, France, native helped guide UWF as the top-ranked team in the country at 26-1, including a perfect 9-0 run in league-play, and the right to host the South Region 1 Tournament at home, in Pensacola, Fla.
GSC Freshman of the Year
West Florida freshman
Serdar Bojadjiev earned
GSC Freshman of the Year accolades in a season in which he posted an impressive 16-1 singles record, including a perfect 5-0 league record. He was 8-0 in No. 4 singles, 3-0 in No. 5, 2-0 in No. 2 and 3-1 in No. 3. The rookie was a combined 3-3 in doubles play, including 2-1 in conference matches, along with partners Pablo Tellez (1-0), Alfonso Castellano (2-2) and Pedro Roese (0-1). The Lidkoping, Sweden, native is currently streaking, having won eight-straight, heading into his first-ever NCAA Division II Men's Tennis Tournament.
GSC Coach of the Year
West Florida head coach
Derrick Racine was named the
GSC Coach of the Year after guiding his squad to a 26-1 record, including a perfect 9-0 in league play, the GSC Regular Season- and Tournament Titles, and the rights to host the NCAA Division II South Region 1 Tournament at home. His men currently rank as the No. 1 team in the country by the ITA as UWF went a perfect 11-0 this regular season versus nationally-ranked opponents: No. 1 Hawaii Pacific (5-4), No. 3 Armstrong State (5-0), No. 5 Valdosta State (7-2), No. 7 Barry (5-4), No. 9 Columbus State (5-0), No. 11 Georgia College (8-1), No. 12 UC San Diego (8-1), No. 15 Midwestern State (9-0), No. 35 Florida Southern (9-0), No. 37 North Alabama (9-0) and No. 48 Florida Tech (8-1). The honor marks the 10th time that Racine has earned conference coaching honors. The Argonauts have now strung off 20-straight wins heading into the NCAA DII Men's Tennis Tournament.
2017 All-GSC Men's Tennis Team
First Team
Leo Blay, VSU
Alex Peyrot, UWF
Gabriel Dias, UWF
Xavier Pineda, VSU
Max Druppel, UNA
Pedro Dumont, UWF
Warren Kuhn, UWF
Jordi Mas, VSU
Second Team
Joan Valy, MC
Julius Kaverinen, UWA
Miguel Garcia, UNA
Rhys Milne, LEE
Marcos Rocca, MC
Lucio Menezes, MC
Fernando Rivas, VSU
Benjamin Poire, UNA
GSC Co-Players of the Year: Leo Blay, VSU and Alex Peyrot, UWF
Freshman of the Year: Serdar Bojadjiev, UWF
Coach of the Year: Derrick Racine, UWF