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Somerset, NJ -- Two weeks after defending its Northeast Conference (NEC) women’s tennis championship, Fairleigh Dickinson is back in the headlines, this time earning a clean sweep of major postseason awards. FDU senior
Anna Rapoport (Moscow, Russia/#1239) repeated as NEC Player of the Year, while teammate
Nicole Chis (Highland Park, NJ/Highland Park) was tabbed NEC Rookie of the Year. The Knights’ first-year head coach
Jonathan Buchman was voted NEC Coach of the Year by his peers.
Rapoport became just the second two-time NEC Player of the Year, joining LIU Brooklyn’s Selma Babic, who was honored in 2009 and 2010. The Moscow, Russia native posted a perfect 7-0 record in NEC play and wrapped her two-year career at FDU with a 12-0 mark against conference opposition. Rapoport racked up 10 wins this season at #1 singles, tying her for most in the NEC, and a 14-11 overall mark for the 2012-13 season. She has won nine of her last ten singles matches heading into FDU’s first round NCAA Tournament match at Virginia to boost her career singles record to an impressive 32-14. Rapoport, a two-time NEC Player of the Week this spring, was also voted to the All-NEC doubles first team with partner Nicole Chis. Prior to Rapoport, FDU sported an NEC Player of the Year back in 2007 when Julija Korsunova won the award as a freshman.
Chis made quite a splash last fall and never looked back. She began her FDU career by winning NEC Rookie of the Month honors in September, then did one better in October, claiming the NEC Player and Rookie of the Month awards. Chis would go on earn two more Rookie of the Week kudos this spring and at year’s end was one of just two freshman to earn a spot on an All-NEC team, earning second team acclaim at #3 singles. Chis, who has posted a 15-7 record on the year, earned the Flight “C” Championship at the Stony Brook Classic and won the Flight 1 singles crown at the USTA Invitational back in the fall. She is FDU’s second NEC Rookie of the Year, joining Julija Korsunova (2007).
Buchman earned his first two NEC championship rings back in 2011-12 when he served as an assistant under FDU and NEC coaching legend Ira Miller. One year later, he found himself in a similar spot, albeit this time in a new role having been promoted to head coach of the Knights. With a chance to repeat on both the men’s and women’s side, the Knights rallied from behind in both championship matches, giving FDU back-to-back sweeps and the New York native a season to remember. The FDU women engaged in a second straight instant classic with Quinnipiac, and with their 4-3 win, the Knights have their sites set on Virginia in first round NEC Tournament action on May 11. The FDU lineup features four All-NEC singles players and each of Buchman’s double teams has earned All-Conference recognition.
Rapoport was joined by a pair of teammates on the All-NEC first team. Freshman
Celine Maier (Nuremberg, Germany/Bertolt-Brecht-Schule Nuremberg) was lauded at the #3 spot, and sophomore
Dina Guzairova (Sochi, Russia/Chelyabinsk #8) was the pick at #5 singles. Joining the trio were Quinnipiac sophomore
Jacqueline Raynor (Garden City, NY/Garden City) and senior
Sarah Viebrock (Carmel, NY/John F. Kennedy Catholic) at the #2 and #3 positions, respectively. LIU Brooklyn sophomore
Nancy Zonneveld (Frankfurt, Germany/European School Frankfurt) was voted All-NEC at #6 singles.
Raynor put the Bobcats on her shoulders down the stretch of the spring season, winning her last six matches and 10-of-11 for the NEC runner-up. She was dominant during the NEC Tournament, posting three straight set victories to improve to 8-0 against league rivals on the year. Raynor’s 13wins at the #2 flight were the most in the conference and she finished the year 17-8 overall.
Viebrock is no stranger to end-of-year honors, having earned her third straight first team All-NEC distinction. She closed her stellar four-year career on a five-match win streak, including a 3-0 mark at the NEC Tournament. Viebrock won all eight of her NEC matches in 2012-13, and finished 17-6 overall. She led the league with 14 victories in #3 flight play and was the NEC Player of the Week on March 13. Viebrock finished her singles career with a 63-38 record and was a impressive 21-5 against NEC competition.
The lone freshman to be voted a first team all-star, Maier will forever be remembered in FDU annals for her comeback win over Quinnipiac’s Michelle Dassa to clinch a second consecutive NEC championship for the Knights. After dropping the first set, 7-5, Maier stormed back to win sets two and three, 6-2 and 6-3, and send FDU back to the NCAA Tournament. Maier leads the Knights with 18 wins on the year and her .750 win percentage ties her for first in the league among those with more than five decisions. She boasts a 10-1 record at the #4 flight and a perfect 7-0 slate versus NEC rivals. Maier, the March NEC Rookie of the Month, heads into the postseason on a six match win streak.
A transfer from South Carolina, Guzairova solidified the #5 singles spot for the Knights, winning six-of-seven matches at the flight en-route to a 15-9 overall mark on the year. She amassed a 5-1 conference record with two of those wins coming in the NEC Tournament, including a straight set triumph against Quinnipiac in the championship match. Guzairova has won five-of-six entering the NCAA Tournament.
Zonneveld battled injuries for much of the year, but came on strong in April with a win over All-Patriot League player Margaret Iliev of Army, following by a pair of victories in the NEC Tournament, including a 6-0, 6-3 win against Quinnipiac in the semis. She posted a 6-2 record in 2012-13 and won all three of her NEC matches.
FDU claimed two of the three first team All-NEC doubles awards.
Nicole Chis (Highland Park, NJ/Highland Park) teamed up with
Anna Rapoport (Moscow, Russia/#1239) to collect #1 flight accolades, while
Dina Guzairova (Sochi, Russia/Chelyabinsk #8) and
Manuela Leme (Varginha, Brazil/E.E. Antania Alves Cruz) were recognized at #3 doubles. The Quinnipiac tandem of
Michelle Dassa (Marlboro, NJ/Marlboro) and
Jacqueline Raynor (Garden City, NY/Garden City) emerged as #2 flight honorees.
Chis and Rapoport proved nearly unbeatable for the Knights, posting an NEC-best 10-2 doubles record in 2012-13. The #1 flight team has won seven straight matches - including three straight in the NEC Tournament - and finished with a 5-1 mark against league competitors. Rapoport was previously honored for her doubles play in 2012, picking up second team accolades along with partner Irina Dementyeva.
Dassa and Raynor racked up an NEC-best 18 wins against just five setbacks and stormed through NEC play with a perfect 7-0 record. The duo won 14 of their 17 matches at the #2 flight and ended their year on a 10-match win streak. In three NEC Tournament victories, Dassa and Raynor dropped just 12 games in total.
Guzairova and Leme didn’t begin teaming up until March, but in that short span defeated all four of their NEC opponents, highlighted by an 8-6 win in the title match against Quinnipiac. They head into the NCAA Tournament with a 6-4 record. Leme is no stranger to the All-NEC doubles team, having earned first team honors with Elmine Botes a year ago.
LIU Brooklyn led the way on the All-NEC singles second team with three honorees: sophomore
Sanne Louwers (Nuenen, Netherlands/Mgr. Cuytenlaan) (#1), senior
Taysha Blessington (Sydney, Australia/Roseville College) (#2) and senior
Aleksandra Pavlovic (Uzice, Serbia/SportsGimnazium) (#5). Quinnipiac sophomores
Michelle Dassa (Marlboro, NJ/Marlboro) and
Ariana Launie (Milton, MA/Milton) were the picks at the #4 and #6 spots, respectively, while NEC Rookie of the Year
Nicole Chis (Highland Park, NJ/Highland Park) achieved all-star status at the #3 flight for FDU.
Louwers, the 2011-12 NEC Rookie of the Year, repeats as a member of the All-NEC second team following a second straight stellar campaign. She went 10-2 at #1 singles en-route to an 18-6 record on the year. Her .750 win percentage tied for best on the circuit and she won all five of her NEC matches, including two at the NEC Championships. Louwers is now 27-8 in two seasons playing for the Blackbirds.
Blessington repeats as a #2 flight second teamer and ends her LIU Brooklyn career as a three-time All-NEC performer. She posted a 4-1 record against NEC opponents in 2012-12 and finished 13-10 overall for the Blackbirds. Blessington won 48 matches over her four years and went 17-5 in league play.
Dassa is another repeat honoree, having earned #4 flight second team honors in each of her first two seasons in Hamden. She wrapped her year with a 9-8 overall mark and 3-2 NEC record. She recorded a straight set win in the NEC semis against LIU Brooklyn, and also posted solid non-conference victories against opponents from UConn, Marist and Army.
Pavlovic ended her LIU career on a high note with her first All-NEC honor. The #5 flight player won 10 of her 12 matches in the spring and finished 13-6 in her senior campaign. Pavlovic went 3-0 within the conference.
Competing at #6 singles, Launie finished with a 12-7 slate in her sophomore season, including a 3-2 record against league rivals. She came through in a big way for the Bobcats in the NEC final, beating FDU’s Manuela Leme, 7-5, 6-4, to keep QU alive in a classic title match with the Knights.
LIU Brooklyn’s
Sanne Louwers (Nuenen, Netherlands/Mgr. Cuytenlaan) and
Taysha Blessington (Sydney, Australia/Roseville College) added to their list of honors by being voted to the All-NEC second doubles team at the #1 position. They were joined by the FDU #2 team of
Celine Maier (Nuremberg, Germany/Bertolt-Brecht-Schule Nuremberg) and
Egzona Morina (Prishtina, Kosovo/American School of Kosovo), and Quinnipiac’s #3 duo of
Mary Chupa (Bradenton, FL/Manatee) and
Ariana Launie (Milton, MA/Milton).
Louwers and Blessington earned first team All-NEC accolades in 2012, and followed with another strong year, finishing 16-5 overall, 11-2 at the #1 flight and 4-0 in the NEC. They are now 24-7 in two years and have amassed a perfect 8-0 conference record.
Maier and Morina are ending their year red-hot, winners of six of their last seven matches at #2 doubles. They combined to go 5-2 against NEC teams, including a pair of NEC Tournament wins. Overall, Maier and Morina have posted an 11-11 record. Morina is a three-time All-NEC doubles honoree, having been named to the first team in 2010 and 2011 along with Julia Prantl.
Chupa and Launie round out the list of award winners. The Quinnipiac #3 tandem won four of their six NEC matches, including a 9-7 comeback win over LIU Brooklyn in the NEC semis that clinched the doubles point. Chupa and Launie finished 12-8 on the year.
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 32nd year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 12 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 23 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic or play-in access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut State, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Monmouth, Mount St. Mary’s, Quinnipiac, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube (@NECsports).