NORFOLK, Va. – Bethune Cookman’s Alex Chepik and Mina Matsuba were named the 2016 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Men’s and Women's Tennis Players of the Year today, as voted on by the conference's head tennis coaches and sports information directors.
Marta Gomar, of Norfolk State, was named the women’s Rookie of the Year, while Spartans head coach Worth Richardson was selected as the Women's Tennis Coach of the Year.
Benedikt Henning, of Norfolk State, was chosen the men’s Rookie of the Year, while Florida A&M head coach Carl Goodman was named the Men’s Tennis Coach of the Year.
Matsuba posted a 17-5 singles record at the number one position, and for the second year in a row had an undefeated 5-0 mark in southern divisional play. She teamed up with Matea Roki for a 13-2 doubles record, including an undefeated 3-0 mark in MEAC play at number one doubles. Matsuba, a three-time MEAC Player of the Year, will enter the tournament on a nine-match winning streak in singles. She was Player of the Week twice this year on March 9 and March 23.
Gomar did the bulk of her singles action at the number three spot as she finished the year with a 10-9 overall record and a perfect 6-0 mark in northern divisional action. At number three singles this year she was 7-2 and is second on the Norfolk State team in wins with 10.
Richardson earns his first Coach of the Year award for the women’s tennis program. In his second season at Norfolk State, Richardson has guided the Spartans to an undefeated mark in MEAC Northern Division action.
Joining Matsuba on the women's First Team is Howard’s Stacey Roheman, Aissa Muamba of North Carolina Central and Florida A&M teammates Shantal Blackwood, Arrice Robinson and Dominique Henry.
Chepik earned his honor as he topped the Bethune-Cookman lineup this season at number one singles. He is 13-7 overall and was 4-0 in southern divisional action. In doubles, he teamed mainly with Greg Almeida and was 7-8 overall with 2-2 in southern divisional play.
Henning finished 10-9 with the bulk of his work at number one singles for the Spartans, who finished 4-1 in northern divisional play. He was 9-8 at number one and won all four of his northern divisional matches. He won Rookie of The Week honors on three occasions and Player of the Week honors once.
Goodman earned his first Men’s Coach of the Year award after leading Florida A&M to a share of the southern division crown after going 3-1 in conference play and 7-11 overall.
Along with Chepik and Henning on the First Team is Chepik’s teammate Walid Gtari, Morgan State’s Jeremy Field, Walner Espinoza of Florida A&M, and Kert Kilumets of North Carolina Central.
The 2016 MEAC Men's and Women's Tennis Championships begins with women's play on Thursday, April 21 at 8:30 a.m., with the men starting at 1:30 p.m. The women's semifinal rounds start on Friday at 8:30 a.m. followed by the men at Noon. The Championship concludes on Saturday with the women's final beginning at 9 a.m. followed by the men's title match at Noon. All the matches will be held at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center on the campus of Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va.
2016 MEAC Men’s and Women’s Tennis All-MEAC Teams
As Voted by the Conference’s Head Tennis Coaches and Sports Information Directors
Women
Player of the Year: Mina Matsuba, Bethune-Cookman
Rookie of the Year: Marta Gomar, Norfolk State
Coach of the Year: Worth Richardson, Norfolk State
First Team
|
Name
|
School
|
Class
|
Hometown
|
|
Mina Matsuba
|
Bethune-Cookman
|
Jr.
|
Mie, Japan
|
|
Stacey Roheman
|
Howard
|
Sr.
|
Castries, St. Lucia
|
|
Shantal Blackwood
|
Florida A&M
|
Sr.
|
Kingston, Jamaica
|
|
Aissa Muamba
|
North Carolina Central
|
Sr.
|
Laval, Canada
|
|
Arrice Robinson
|
Florida A&M
|
Jr.
|
Port Orange, Fla.
|
|
Dominique Henry
|
Florida A&M
|
Jr.
|
Miami, Fla.
|
Second Team
|
Name
|
School
|
Class
|
Hometown
|
|
Mia Ramic
|
North Carolina Central
|
Sr.
|
Split, Croatia
|
|
Intissar Rassif
|
South Carolina State
|
Jr.
|
Morocco
|
|
Ancia Ifill
|
Bethune-Cookman
|
Sr.
|
St. Georges, Barbados
|
|
Elvira Galieva
|
Delaware State
|
So.
|
Ufa, Russia
|
|
Andrea Macchiavello
|
Norfolk State
|
Sr.
|
Boca Raton, Fla.
|
|
Alejandra Vidal
|
Bethune-Cookman
|
So.
|
Maracaibo, Venezuela
|
Men
Player of the Year: Alex Chepik, Bethune-Cookman
Rookie of the Year: Benedikt Henning, Norfolk State
Coach of the Year: Carl Goodman, Florida A&M
First Team
|
Name
|
School
|
Class
|
Hometown
|
|
Alex Chepik
|
Bethune-Cookman
|
So.
|
Moscow, Russia
|
|
Jeremy Field
|
Morgan State
|
Fr.
|
Seyssinet-Pariset, France
|
|
Benedikt Henning
|
Norfolk State
|
Fr.
|
Bad Hersfeld, Germany
|
|
Walner Espinoza
|
Florida A&M
|
Jr.
|
Panama City, Fla.
|
|
Walid Gtari
|
Bethune-Cookman
|
Sr.
|
Arianna, Tunisia
|
|
Kert Kliments
|
North Carolina Central
|
So.
|
Kuressare, Estonia
|
Second Team
|
Name
|
School
|
Class
|
Hometown
|
|
Karlyn Small
|
Florida A&M
|
So.
|
Phoenixville, Pa.
|
|
Vladyslav Yanchenko
|
South Carolina State
|
So.
|
Ukraine
|
|
Ismael Kaouache
|
Howard
|
Jr.
|
Casablanca, Morocco
|
|
Alvaro Barrera
|
Bethune-Cookman
|
Jr.
|
Madrid, Spain
|
|
Jakub Vitek
|
South Carolina State
|
So.
|
Czech Republic
|
|
Courage Okungbowa*
|
Florida A&M
|
Jr.
|
Wesley Chapel, Fla.
|
|
Miguel Suarez*
|
Hampton
|
Sr.
|
Malaga, Spain
|
* - tied for final spot