SOMERSET, NEW JERSEY--- The NEC released the results of the all-league annual balloting process, which surveys all nine of the Conference’s head coaches, on Wednesday afternoon, and St. Francis College (NY) men’s tennis star Jindrich Chaloupka was named the 2009 Northeast Conference Men’s Tennis Player of the Year. He was also named to the Singles NEC All-Conference First Team and with sophomore Esteban Mesa, was named to the NEC Doubles All-Conference Second Team.
Chaloupka was a primary catalyst in what was a landmark season for the upstart Terriers as the team increased its win total from one to seven. Chaloupka’s three-year stint at St. Francis (NY) yielded a 38-6 (.863) singles record, all in the No. 1 position, and culminated with the Conference’s highest individual athletic honor.
St. Francis’ Men’s tennis Head Coach Chad Davis praised Jindrich for his accomplishment. “I’m happy for Jindrich. He is deserving of the award, as he came to play in every match, with intensity and his stats reflect the achievement.”
The 6-foot-5 hard-serving senior posted the NEC’s top win percentage in each of the past three seasons. The first Terrier to ever attain all-NEC first team status, Chaloupka, owned a 15-3 (.833) top-flight singles mark this season. Winning in straight sets every time, Chaloupka owned a perfect 7-0 mark against Northeast Conference competition, finishing a perfect 17-0 in conference matches.
A native of the Czech Republic, he is the first St. Francis student-athlete to receive all-NEC tennis recognition since Arthur Velnik’s 2006 second team selection and the first Terrier to receive a NEC Player of the Year accolade since Ray Minlend, who in 1998-1999, was named to the league’s top honor. Chaloupka and Mesa were able to establish a cohesive unit that posted the leagues’ third best win- percentage, finishing the year at 5-2 (.712)
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By: Brian D. Morales (Assistant Sports Information Intern)
2009 NEC Men’s Tennis Award Winners
Player of the Year
Jindrich Chaloupka St. Francis (NY) Sr. Sumeerk, Czech Republic/Lincoln Memorial University
Rookie of the Year
Laurance Heads Monmouth Fr. Stockton-on-Tees, England/Repton School
Coach of the Year
Paul Gagliardi Sacred Heart
2009 NEC Men’s Tennis Singles All-Conference First Team
Flight Name School Yr. Hometown/High School
1 Jindrich Chaloupka St. Francis (NY) Sr. Sumeerk, Czech Republic/Lincoln
Memorial University
2 Brian Mikkelson Quinnipiac So. Mequon, WI/Homestead
3 Adam Gart Sacred Heart Jr. Bedford, MA/University of Rhode Island
4 Laurance Heads Monmouth Fr. Stockton-on-Tees, England/Repton School
5 Jinal Shah Sacred Heart Jr. Mombasa, Kenya/The Citadel
6 Michael Syer Sacred Heart So. Ontario, Canada/St. Ignatius of Loyola
2009 NEC Men’s Tennis Singles All-Conference Second Team
Flight Name School Yr. Hometown/High School
1 Matt Gordon Fairleigh Dickinson So. London, England/Mill Hill County
2 Andrew Denny Fairleigh Dickinson Fr. Bingley, England/Bradford Grammar
3 Garrett Lane Quinnipiac Fr. Reading, MA/Pingree School
4 Markus Bolinder Fairleigh Dickinson Fr. Stockholm, Sweden/Ostra Reals Gymnasium
5 Alex Jorne Fairleigh Dickinson So. Rochester, NY/Brighton
6 Ian Terpilowski Monmouth So. Mount Macedon, Australia/Braemar College
2009 NEC Men’s Tennis Doubles All-Conference First Team
Flight Name School Yr. Hometown/High School
1 Brian Mikkelson Quinnipiac So. Mequon, WI/Homestead
James Kwei Quinnipiac Fr. Dedham, MA/Dedham
2 Marco Jemersic Fairleigh Dickinson Fr. Zagreb, Croatia (X Gimnazija Ivan Supek)
Alex Jorne Fairleigh Dickinson So. Rochester, NY/Brighton
3 Nick Mazzarese Sacred Heart So. Stonington, CT/Stonington
Jinal Shah Sacred Heart Jr. Mombasa, Kenya/The Citadel
2009 NEC Men’s Tennis Doubles All-Conference Second Team
Flight Name School Yr. Hometown/High School
1 Jindrich Chaloupka St. Francis (NY) Sr. Sumeerk, Czech Republic/Lincoln Memorial University
Esteban Mesa St. Francis (NY) So. Bogota, Colombia/Mars Hills College
2 Corey Forrest Monmouth Jr. Ocala, FL/Trinity Catholic
Laurance Heads Monmouth Fr. Stockton-on-Tees, England/Repton School
3 Tom Curran Quinnipiac Sr. Fairfield, CT/Fairfield Prep
Joseph Nuara Quinnipiac Sr. Little Silver, NJ/CBA