Sun Conference

Freeman, Paschal Top All-Conference Men’s Tennis Roster

4/19/2012 9:56:24 PM

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.— The Sun Conference announced its men’s tennis All-Conference teams and individual award winners at the conference tournament banquet hosted by Embry-Riddle at the Sunset Harbor Yacht Club on Thursday. Embry-Riddle swept the individual awards as Chris Freeman was named the Player of the Year, Dave Paschal picked up the Coach of the Year laurels and Simon Felix was the Champions of Character Award winner. ERAU’s Adrian Bayh and Patrick Besch also comprised the inaugural Doubles Team of the Year. The All-Conference team was determined by a vote of the league’s head coaches.

Freeman reeled in Player of the Year honors for the second straight season after compiling a 20-7 overall singles record (5-0 in conference play) and a 19-3 doubles mark. The ERAU junior’s 2011-12 resume includes winning the USTA/ITA national singles title in the fall, which earned him a No. 1 national ranking for much of the season. Freeman is currently ranked second in singles and is part of the nation’s 12th-ranked doubles team.

Bayh and Besch also have a national title to their credit after winning the USTA/ITA doubles crown the day before Freeman claimed his singles title. Bayh and Besch combined for a 19-5 overall doubles record and a perfect 5-0 mark in league competition. The duo achieved a No. 1 national doubles ranking following the national title run and they have maintained that standing throughout the season.

The Coach of the Year award is the eighth of Paschal’s career at Embry-Riddle. Paschal led the Eagles to their eighth conference regular season title at 6-0 and they are the top seed in this weekend’s conference tournament. ERAU is ranked No. 2 in the NAIA and owns a 16-3 overall record.

Felix is a sophomore majoring in Air Traffic Management. In addition to accumulating a 16-3 singles record and achieving a No. 15 national singles ranking, while playing in all of the Eagles’ 19 matches, Felix has still managed to maintain a 3.7 grade point average.

“Simon competes with great temperament, respect for opponent, integrity and class,” Paschal said. “ I have never seen Simon ask an opponent about a call or have arguments in his career; he just competes and accepts result.  Simon does over 20 hours of our team community service, but he has also been doing community service on his own at a local animal shelter.  His GPA also shows how serious he is about his academics.”
 
The league also announced the Academic All-Conference roster, which featured 15 student-athletes representing six schools. To be eligible, student-athletes must have completed at least one full year at the nominating institution and have 3.5 or better cumulative grade point average. Webber International junior Marcel Schmitt, who is majoring in Finance, headlined the 14-person All-Academic roster as the only individual with a 4.0 cumulative grade point average.

The Sun Conference tournament begins at 8:30 a.m. on Friday when Embry-Riddle takes on fourth-seeded Northwood. The second semifinal is scheduled for 11 a.m. and will see second-seeded Warner take on against No. 3 seed Webber International. The championship match will be played at 10 a.m. on Saturday with the tournament champion earning an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship in Mobile, Ala., May 15-19.


First Team All-Conference

Chris Freeman (Embry-Riddle) • Jr. • Costa Mesa, California • Singles Record: 20-7
Patrick Besch (Embry-Riddle) • So. • Mainz, Germany • Singles Record: 11-4
Simon Felix (Embry-Riddle) • So. • Geneva, Switzerland • Singles Record: 20-3
Peter Francis (Embry-Riddle) • Sr. • Hampshire, England • Singles Record: 18-4
Dean Loock (SCAD Savannah) • Sr. • Grahamstown, South Africa • Singles Record: 5-4
Julian Ramirez-Luna (Warner) • So. • Quindio, Armenia • Singles Record: 11-3

Second Team All-Conference

Carl Ackered (Webber International) • Fr. • Tyreso, Sweden • Singles Record: 10-3
Patrick Frandji (Warner) • Fr. • Orlando, Florida • Singles Record: 6-2
Jonathan Leonik (Embry-Riddle) • Fr. • Shalimar, Florida • Singles Record: 13-7
Andrew Rifkin (St. Thomas) • Sr. • Miami, Florida • Singles Record: 5-9
David Spennare (Embry-Riddle) • Jr. • Gothenburg, Sweden • Singles Record: 14-1
Daniel Spurry (Webber International) • Fr. • Passau, Germany • Singles Record: 9-7

Doubles Team of the Year
Patrick Besch/Adrian Bayh (Embry-Riddle) • Record: 19-5

Player of the Year
Chris Freeman (Embry-Riddle)

Coach of the Year
Dave Paschal (Embry-Riddle)

Champions of Character Award Winner
Simon Felix (Embry-Riddle)
 

Academic All-Conference