RC's Fainter, VWC's Yousif, W&L's Kirkland also Honored
FOREST, Va. --- Washington and Lee University's
Sonja Meighan picked up her third major conference honor in two
seasons as she was named the ODAC Player of the Year for the second
consecutive campaign as part of the 2013 ODAC Women's Tennis
All-Conference awards. Roanoke College mentor Justin Fainter
was tabbed the ODAC Coach of the Year, while Virginia Wesleyan
College newcomer Sara Yousif garnered ODAC Rookie of the Year
accolades. W&L's Patricia Kirkland received the ODAC/Farm
Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete Award in a vote of the league's
sports information directors.
Meighan, a sophomore from McLean, Va., put together a 10-3
campaign at #1 singles, with her three losses coming to ranked
opponents throughout the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA)
regional ranking system. The fifth-rated player in the
Atlantic South Region, Meighan's win total includes a 5-0 mark
against ODAC competition. Three of her victories came against
regionally ranked opponents, included Chelsea Motie from Carnegie
Mellon, who is ranked sixth in the Atlantic South. She also
topped the Skidmore's Nataly Mendoza, who is ranked sixth in the
Northeast, and Trinity (Texas) standout Mackenzie Knoop, who is the
fourth-ranked player in the West.
Kirkland, a sophomore from Charleston, S.C., performs both on and
off the court. She boasts a 3.697 grade point average as a
Mathematics major. She is both a W&L Scholar and a member
of the All-ODAC Academic Team, the latter of which she is slated
for a second appearance following the 2013 season. She is
also a member of the Phi Eta Sigma national honor society (all
disciplines, first-year students). On the court, Kirkland
posted a 7-0 a record in singles play, which included a 5-0 mark at
the third flight, leading to an All-ODAC First Team honor.
She was also 2-0 from the second flight.
In doubles action, Meighan and Kirkland are the top-rated duo in
the Atlantic South, having posted an 11-2 overall record that
includes an 8-2 showing from the top flight and a 3-0 mark at #2
doubles. Four of the pair's wins have come against regionally
ranked opponents, including the second and sixth-ranked squads from
their own region in Sewanee's Jenny Liles and Lindsey Liles and
Carnegie Mellon's Motie and Bryn Raschke, respectively.
Meighan and Kirkland have also topped Trinity (Texas) duo Knoop and
Thavindra Ekanayake, who are sixth in the West, and DePauw's Maggie
MacPhail and Caroline Emhardt, who are eighth in the Central.
Fainter, in his second season guiding the Maroons' women's tennis
program, led Roanoke to a 14-4 overall record and a 10-1 league
mark on the way to the second seed in the ODAC Tournament. RC
reached the conference finals for the first time in program history
in 2013. The Maroons are currently ranked 19th in the
Atlantic South Region, with top singles player and All-ODAC First
Team honoree, sophomore Jennifer Antoszyk, ranked 15th
individually.
Yousif, a freshman from Waxhaw, N.C., put together a 10-7 record
that includes an 8-4 mark from the top flight this spring.
She also posted a pair of wins at #2 singles and a 5-3 mark against
ODAC competition, which led to an All-ODAC Third Team spot.
She helped lead a VWC squad that featured four first year players
to the fifth seed in the conference tournament and a spot in the
ODAC semifinals. Midway through the season, Yousif put
together a seven-match singles winning streak that included four
wins over conference opponents. In doubles play, Yousif was
11-10 overall, playing mostly with classmate Victory Ryherd.
The duo went 6-3 from the top flight and 4-2 against league foes,
paving the way to third team recognition.
For more information on ODAC Women's Tennis, visit the websites of
any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC's home on the
Internet at www.odaconline.com. Don't forget
to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow the ODAC on Twitter at @odacathletics.
2013 ALL-ODAC WOMEN'S TENNIS TEAMS
ODAC Player of the Year: Sonja Meighan, So., Washington
and Lee
ODAC Coach of the Year: Justin Fainter,
Roanoke
ODAC Rookie of the Year: Sara Yousif, Fr.,
Virginia Wesleyan
ODAC/Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete:
Patricia Kirkland, So., Washington and Lee
All-ODAC First Team
#1 Singles: Jennifer Antoszyk, So., Roanoke
#1 Singles: Sonja Meighan, So, Washington and
Lee
#2 Singles: Meghan Buell, So., Washington and
Lee
#2 Singles: Corbin Leitch, Sr., Roanoke
#3 Singles: Patricia Kirkland, So., Washington
and Lee
#4 Singles: Kerry Cotter, Sr., Washington and
Lee
#5 Singles: Jen Hall, Sr., Washington and Lee
#6 Singles: Chelsea Mixon, Jr., Washington and
Lee
#1 Doubles: Karen Montoya, Sr., and Priscila
Montoya, Jr., Hollins
#1 Doubles: Patricia Kirkland, So., and Sonja
Meighan, So., Washington and Lee
#2 Doubles: Meghan Buell, So., and Cameron
Dorsey, Jr., Washington and Lee
#3 Doubles: Claire Cahill, Jr., and Chelsea
Mixon, Jr., Washington and Lee
All-ODAC Second Team
#1 Singles: Katie Gordon, Jr., Bridgewater
#1 Singles: Karen Montoya, Sr., Hollins
#2 Singles: Patricia Verdozoto, So., Randolph
#3 Singles: Laura Dodson, Sr., Roanoke
#4 Singles: Briell Smith, Fr., Roanoke
#5 Singles: Kristen McDowell, Fr., Roanoke
#6 Singles: Miranda Donovan, Sr., Bridgewater
#1 Doubles: Katie Gordon, Jr., and Marla O'Bryan,
So., Bridgewater
#1 Doubles: Jennifer Antoszyk, So., and Corbin
Leitch, Sr., Roanoke
#2 Doubles: Laura Dodson, Sr., and Briell Smith,
Fr., Roanoke
#3 Doubles: Miranda Donovan, Sr., and Rita
Murphy, Sr., Bridgewater
All-ODAC Third Team
#1 Singles: Angelina Sportelli, Fr.,
Randolph-Macon
#1 Singles: Sara Yousif, Fr., Virginia
Wesleyan
#2 Singles: Priscila Montoya, Jr., Hollins
#3 Singles: Victoria Coffee, So., Hollins
#4 Singles: Jessie Mitchell, Jr., Bridgewater
#5 Singles: Olivia Stone, Sr., Bridgewater
#6 Singles: Kaitlyn Diskerud, Fr., Roanoke
#1 Doubles: Courtney Owens, Sr., and Angelina
Sportelli, Fr., Randolph-Macon
#1 Doubles: Victoria Ryherd, Fr., and Sara
Yousif, Fr., Virginia Wesleyan
#2 Doubles: Victoria Coffee, So., and Sarah Grace
McCormick, So., Hollins
#3 Doubles: Brianna Carroll, So., and Kristen
McDowell, Fr., Roanoke