FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Penmen Lead the Way, Sweeping NE10 Major Awards.
MANSFIELD, Mass. – For the third-straight season, Southern New Hampshire’s Tiago Fernandes has earned the title of Vern Cox Men’s Tennis Player of the Year – following his perfect 9-0 record at No. 1 singles during Northeast 10 Conference play – as the league office announced major awards and all-conference teams on Tuesday.
For a complete list of award winners, please see below. Remarkably, not only did SNHU sweep the major awards, but also had players at every spot of the All-Conference First Team. SNHU and Merrimack led the league with six selections to All-Conference Teams.
Each of SNHU’s players that were named to the First Team – Fernandes, Willem van Biezen, Emmanuel Vacalares, Bas van Biezen, Miguel Marreiros and Fernando Torres – were double selections, earning both singles and doubles recognition.
Fernandes went 9-0 against top NE10 competition all season long, earning his third-consecutive Player of the Year Award and landing on the First Team as a No. 1 singles and No. 3 doubles player. He helped lead the Penmen to their fourth-straight NE10 regular-season title, as they prepare to host a semifinal match on Thursday.
Vacalares also had a spectacular year for SNHU – going 6-1 at No. 3 singles and 8-1 overall in singles action to be named NE10 Rookie of the Year. He recorded a perfect 2-0 record at second-flight singles to give him a 0.889 winning percentage in nine league matches. In addition, he was named First Team at No. 3 singles and doubles, while also landing on the All-Rookie Team.
SNHU’s Greg Coache was voted NE10 Coach of the Year after leading the Penmen to their fourth-straight regular-season title. Coache’s team went a perfect 9-0 in NE10 play for the fourth-consecutive year, earning the No. 1 seed in the NE10 Championship – which begins Tuesday with First Round action.
The Vern Cox Player of the Year Award is named in honor of former longtime Springfield College head coach Vern Cox.
NE10 Men's Tennis All-Conference Awards
Vern Cox Player of the Year
Tiago Fernandes, SNHU
Rookie of the Year
Emmanuel Vacalares, SNHU
Coach of the Year
Greg Coache, SNHU
First Team
No. 1 Singles – Tiago Fernandes, SNHU
No. 2 Singles – Willem van Biezen, SNHU
No. 3 Singles – Emmanuel Vacalares, SNHU
No. 4 Singles – Connor Aulson (Bentley)/Bas van Biezen (SNHU)
No. 5 Singles – Miguel Marreiros, SNHU
No. 6 Singles – Fernando Torres, SNHU
No. 1 Doubles – Willem van Biezen/Bas van Biezen, SNHU
No. 2 Doubles – Miguel Marreiros/Fernando Torres, SNHU
No. 3 Doubles – Tiago Fernandes/Emmanuel Vacalares, SNHU
Second Team
No. 1 Singles – Roberto Chong, Franklin Pierce
No. 2 Singles – Daniel Weitz (Bentley)/Philip Blythe (Le Moyne)/Jonathan Garcia (Merrimack)
No. 3 Singles – Andres Hernandez, Le Moyne
No. 4 Singles – Conrad Koch, Merrimack
No. 5 Singles – Alexander Novins, Bentley
No. 6 Singles – Sven Gopfrich, Le Moyne
No. 1 Doubles – Philip Blythe/Tom Jarry (Le Moyne), Denis Davydov/Conrad Koch (Merrimack)
No. 2 Doubles – Alex Fedorov/Jonathan Garcia, Merrimack
No. 3 Doubles – Alec Mackay Rodriguez/Marshall Wood, Merrimack
Third Team
No. 1 Singles – Tom Jarry, Le Moyne
No. 2 Singles – Preston Gordon, Franklin Pierce
No. 3 Singles – Alex Fedorov, Merrimack
No. 4 Singles – Yuval Barak, Franklin Pierce
No. 5 Singles –Alec Mackay Rodriguez, Merrimack
No. 6 Singles – Aaron Diamond, Stonehill
No. 1 Doubles – Trent Newman/Samuel Miller, Stonehill
No. 2 Doubles – Luke Attride-Stirling/David Robres de Veciana, Adelphi
No. 3 Doubles – James Bisazza/Andrew Schadt, Franklin Pierce
All-Rookie Team
Alexander Novins, Bentley
Mauricio Fadul Rubod, Bentley
Preston Gordon, Franklin Pierce
Nkrumah Patrick, Franklin Pierce
Jonathan Garcia, Merrimack
Alec Mackay Rodriguez, Merrimack
Conrad Koch, Merrimack
Marshal Wood, Merrimack
Fernando Torres, SNHU
Emmanuel Vacalares, SNHU
Juan Camilo Rojas, Stonehill
ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 15 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 student-athletes compete in conference championships, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
