ROCK HILL, S.C. --- Six members of the Tusculum University men's tennis team were selected All-Conference by the South Atlantic Conference, the SAC office announced Wednesday. Voting was conducted by the league's 13 head coaches.
In singles, graduate student Rhodri Atkinson was a first-team selection, with second-team honors to junior Nemanja Subanovic and graduate student Kenta Kondou. Graduate student Frank Bonacia was a third-team pick in the voting. In doubles, Subanovic and sophomore Marco Jalalian were a first-team selection, with third-team honors to Kondou and sophomore Nathan Matsuguma.
The Pioneers finished the regular season in second place in the SAC with an 11-1 record and a 15-5 overall mark for second-year head coach Matt Frost. Tusculum has been nationally ranked for the entire spring season, reaching as high as 25th in the ITA Division II team rankings.
Atkinson was selected first-team All-Conference in singles for the third straight season. The Longhope, England native has gone 16-8 overall this season for the Pioneers primarily at flight one, with a 13-6 record in dual matches and a 7-4 conference record. Atkinson, who has been as high as 44th in this season's ITA Division II singles rankings, has a 60-20 career record in singles during his collegiate career, which includes four seasons at Lenoir-Rhyne.
Subanovic was named second-team All-SAC for the second time in his career after compiling a 14-9 overall record and a 12-8 record in dual matches, which includes an 8-7 mark at flight two. The native of Subotica, Serbia went 8-3 in conference play and improved his career singles record to 38-26.
Kondou earned second-team All-SAC honors after receiving third-team accolades last season. He leads the Pioneers in victories with an 18-6 overall record and a has 17-3 dual match mark, with a 12-3 record at flight three and 9-2 in SAC competition. The Saitama, Japan native has an impressive 49-13 record in singles during his three seasons at Tusculum and a 69-22 mark which includes two seasons at Missouri Valley College.
Bonacia was a third-team All-SAC selection this year after being a second-team pick in both 2021 and 2022. He went undefeated for the Pioneers during the spring season, posting an 8-0 record in dual matches and 7-0 in conference play, all at flight four. The Rome, Italy native was 9-3 overall this season and has a 57-22 record in four seasons at Tusculum.
In doubles, Subanovic and Jalalian went 10-7 at flight one and 8-2 in conference action. Subanovic was a second-team All-SAC pick in doubles in 2021 while Jalalian, a native of Hannover, Germany, receives All-Conference honors for the first time in his career. As a duo, Subanovic and Jalalian have a 14-10 record in two seasons for the Pioneers.
Kondou and Matsuguma were 10-6 overall as a doubles pair this season, with a 7-3 league mark. Matsuguma, a native of Tokyo, Japan, is a first-time All-Conference honoree.
Mateo Bivol of Newberry was voted SAC Player of the Year, with Freshman of the Year honors to Alexandru Giurea of Lincoln Memorial. Derrick Taylor of Wingate was Coach of the Year after leading the Bulldogs to a 12-0 league finish and a 17-2 overall record in his first season as head coach.
Tusculum will face Lenoir-Rhyne in the quarterfinals of the SAC Championship tournament on Thursday, April 20 at 2 p.m. at the Palmetto Tennis Center in Sumter, South Carolina.
2023 SAC Men's Tennis All-Conference
First Team Doubles
Gabriel Constantino/Edis Nokic, Wingate
Nemanja Subanovic/Marco Jalalian, Tusculum
Florian Walcher/Carlo Rosselini, Wingate
Second Team Doubles
Mateo Bivol/Laurenz Grabia, Newberry
Luka Brown/Hugo Nossler, Wingate
Marnix Van Dalen/Lars Hordijk, Carson-Newman
Third Team Doubles
Aaron Cabo/Greyson Doscotch, Anderson
Kenta Kondou/Nathan Matsuguma, Tusculum
Juan Sengariz/Julian Kenzlers, Anderson
First Team Singles
Rhodri Atkinson, Tusculum
Mateo Bivol, Newberry
Gabriel Constantino, Wingate
Marc Janse, Carson-Newman
Juan Sengariz, Anderson
Florian Walcher, Wingate
Second Team Singles
Jonas Grasmueck, Wingate
Gjorgji Jankulovski, Carson-Newman
Kenta Kondou, Tusculum
Edis Nokic, Wingate
Nemanja Subanovic, Tusculum
Marnix Van Dalen, Carson-Newman
Third Team Singles
Diego Arzaluz, Limestone
Frank Bonacia, Tusculum
Alexandru Giurea, Lincoln Memorial
Laurenz Grabia, Newberry
Thom Hermans, Lincoln Memorial
Ramiro Rincon Hernandez, Limestone
Player of the Year: Mateo Bivol, Newberry
Freshman of the Year: Alexandru Giurea, Lincoln Memorial
Coach of the Year: Derrick Taylor, Wingate
