Women: MIAA Release (HTML) (PDF), Season Stats
Men: MIAA Release (HTML) (PDF), Season Stats
April 30, 2009 – Six women’s tennis and three men’s tennis players received all-MIAA recognition from the league office on Wednesday, highlighted by sophomore Kelsey Kuykendall’s first-team selection at No. 6 singles.
Kuykendall (Oronogo, Mo.; Carl Junction) went 26-4 overall on the season in singles play and posted a perfect 7-0 mark in MIAA matches at the No. 6 singles spot. She went 17-2 in dual meets and finished the season on a seven-match winning streak. The award marks the second straight year Kuykendall has been recognized as an all-conference performer after picking up honorable mention accolades at No. 4 singles last season.
Senior Courtney Walther (St. Louis, Mo.; Visitation Academy) was joined by freshmen teammates Ellen Russell (Clinton, Iowa; Clinton) and Dagmar Velez (Rolla, Mo.; Rolla) on the second team. Walther, who was a first-team pick in 2007, was recognized for her 23-8 overall, and 6-2 MIAA, record at No. 2 singles. Russell – who became the program’s first conference player of the week since 2004 when she was honored in late March – finished her freshman campaign with a 24-5 (6-1 MIAA) record at No. 4 singles, while Velez compiled an 18-10 (4-3 MIAA) mark at the No. 5 singles spot.
Russell also received honorable mention status with sophomore partner Amy Ochs (Kirksville, Mo.; Kirksville) at No. 2 doubles, while senior Lindsy Blair (Pella, Iowa; Pella) capped her impressive Truman career with honorable mention recognition in her first season at No. 1 singles. Blair, who finished her season with a 22-8 (4-4 MIAA) record, also picked up the conference’s sportsmanship award that was voted on by both league coaches and players. She is a four-time all-MIAA performer, including her co-freshman of the year award in 2006.
On the men’s side, sophomore Colin Boswell (Pella, Iowa; Pella) was dubbed an honorable mention player at No. 5 singles after going 10-9 overall this season. Boswell went 6-1 at the No. 5 spot in dual play and went .500 (2-2) in the conference.
Junior Peter Bracha (Ames, Iowa; Ames) picked up his third straight honorable mention doubles award, this time with junior Steven Hipkiss (Belleville, Ill.; St. Louis University High) – who was an all-MIAA singles performer in 2008. The duo went 11-3 overall – including 3-2 in MIAA contests.
The Bulldog women finished their 2008-09 season with a 16-5 record, while the men capped their campaign at 8-6. Under the direction of head coach Pete Kendall, each squad advanced to the third-place match of the conference tournament before all matches but the championships were cancelled due to inclement weather.