TEMPE, Ariz. --- The Tusculum University men's tennis team finished the 2021 season ranked 24th in the final Oracle/Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division II National Team Rankings, the ITA has announced.
Individually, freshman Dmitry Bezborodov ended the season ranked 41st nationally and eighth in the Southeast Region in singles, while the doubles team of junior Frank Bonacia and freshman Nemanja Subanovic was ranked ninth in the region.
The Pioneers compiled a 17-4 overall record during the 2021 season and claimed the program's third South Atlantic Conference Championship tournament title. Tusculum qualified for the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time since 2008, and finished the season with the highest year-end ITA ranking in program history.
Tusculum, which was fifth in the final ITA Southeast Region rankings, went 9-2 in conference play before defeating Lincoln Memorial, Queens and Anderson to win its first SAC tournament championship since 2008. The Pioneers had winning streaks of eight and seven straight matches during the season, and went 6-4 against teams that were included in the final ITA national rankings of the season.
Bezborodov was honored as SAC Freshman of the Year after compiling a 16-4 record in singles for the Pioneers, including a 9-1 mark in conference play. The Almaty, Kazakhstan native was a first-team All-SAC singles honoree and had a 10-match winning streak from February 20 to March 24. Bezborodov was 5-4 against players who ended the season regionally ranked.
Bonacia and Subanovic teamed to earn second-team All-SAC honors in doubles after teaming up at midseason at flight one. As a duo, Bonacia and Subanovic won their first four matches and finished the year with a 7-3 record, including a 6-1 mark in conference play. Bonacia, who hails from Rome, Italy, went 12-6 overall in doubles while Subanovic, a product of Subotica, Serbia, had a 13-7 singles record for the season.
Barry, which won the NCAA Division II team championship, finished atop the national rankings with a 13-0 record. Columbus State (23-1) was second, followed by Saint Leo, Hawaii-Hilo and Valdosta State in the top five. Ahead of the Pioneers in the Southeast Region rankings were Columbus State, Lander (13-3), North Georgia (12-5) and Wingate (13-3).
