Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Five Blue Raiders Earn All-Conference Honors
5/1/2018 10:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
MT’s 22-5 season helps five to earn recognition
MURFREESBORO, Tenn.– Middle Tennessee's best season since 1997 was rewarded by Conference USA on Tuesday, as five total Blue Raiders were listed on the All-C-USA Singles and Doubles teams.
"These are great awards that recognize our hard work this season," MT head coach Jimmy Borendame said. "To have five guys get recognized shows that our program is moving in the right direction. I am proud of our whole team for the season we have had."
On the All-C-USA Second Team Singles list for the Blue Raiders is Chris Edge, Gian Issa, Tom Moonen, and Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore. Issa led the Blue Raiders in the spring with a 22-2 record and is tied for third in singles wins in a single season with 32 since August. His 87 career singles wins is the sixth-best mark in the history of the program. Edge finished behind Issa in spring wins with a record of 18-7, leading the team in wins at No. 3 and 4. His 26 wins since August put him at fourth all-time in wins as a freshman, and his 25 doubles wins is the best of any Blue Raider freshman.
"Gian really stepped it up this year," Borendame added. "Going into the fall, if I'm honest, I was unsure of what type of senior season he was going to have. To see how far he has come from his freshman and sophomore years, it is impressive."
Moonen often had the toughest chore of any of the Blue Raiders, manning the top spot in the lineup. His 9-12 record saw most of its results come at the No. 1 spot in the MT singles lineup, and notable wins came against Wichita State, Wisconsin, UTSA, and William & Mary. Morell also spent some time at the top spot, but he led MT in wins at No. 2 with 10. Overall, he was 14-7, including a 4-1 record in three-set matches this spring.
In doubles, Moonen and Edge were named to the First Team, while Morell and Miguel Negre Fernandez were listed on the Second Team. Moonen and Edge were 17-5 this season, with 16 of their wins coming at the No. 1 spot. Their spring included a 2-0 record in matches that went to a tiebreak and wins over a ranked team on three occasions. As for Morell and Negre, they were 16-3 this season, including 15 wins at No. 2. Wins over Vanderbilt, Indiana, Tulane and Drake highlighted the regular season, which ended with a seven-match win streak.
"Our doubles recognitions are really a credit to our whole team," Borendame said. "We made doubles a priority this year in practice but made sure it was quality practice instead of just loads of time on doubles. Furthermore, the whole team pushed each other in doubles and we really had 10 strong doubles players competing for the six spots on a daily basis."
Follow the Blue Raiders on Twitter, @MT_MensTennis, and Facebook, MTSU Men's Tennis, to keep up with MT throughout the year.
2017-18 Conference USA Men's Tennis Awards
Player of the Year: Aziz Kijametovic, Old Dominion
Freshman of the Year: Luca Keist, Charlotte
Newcomer of the Year: Vincent Schneider, Old Dominion
Outstanding Singles Player of the Championship: Vincent Schneider, Old Dominion
Outstanding Doubles Team of the Championship: Vincent Schneider/Jannik Geisse, Old Dominion
Coach of the Year: Dominik Mueller, Old Dominion
All-Conference USA Singles
First Team
Luca Keist, Charlotte
Remi Chancerel, Florida Atlantic
Aziz Kijametovic, Old Dominion
Adam Moundir, Old Dominion
Eric Rutledge, Rice
Tim Dollman, UAB
Second Team
Jason Legall, Florida Atlantic
Chris Edge, Middle Tennessee
Gian Issa, Middle Tennessee
Tom Moonen, Middle Tennessee
Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore, Middle Tennessee
Francois Musitelli, Old Dominion
Vincent Schneider, Old Dominion
Sumit Sarkar, Rice
Wen-Po Tseng, Southern Miss
All-Conference USA Doubles
First Team
Tom Moonen/Chris Edge, Middle Tennessee
Aziz Kijametovic/Francois Musitelli, Old Dominion
Eric Rutledge/Sumit Sarkar, Rice
Tim Dollman/Stefan Gonzalez, UAB
Second Team
Luca Keist/Constandinos Chirstoforou, Charlotte
Jason Legall/Ignacio Garcia, Florida Atlantic
Miguel Negre Fernandez/Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore, Middle Tennessee
Adam Moundir/Javier Maestre, Old Dominion
Wen-Po Tseng/Chun-Han Tsai, Southern Miss
"These are great awards that recognize our hard work this season," MT head coach Jimmy Borendame said. "To have five guys get recognized shows that our program is moving in the right direction. I am proud of our whole team for the season we have had."
On the All-C-USA Second Team Singles list for the Blue Raiders is Chris Edge, Gian Issa, Tom Moonen, and Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore. Issa led the Blue Raiders in the spring with a 22-2 record and is tied for third in singles wins in a single season with 32 since August. His 87 career singles wins is the sixth-best mark in the history of the program. Edge finished behind Issa in spring wins with a record of 18-7, leading the team in wins at No. 3 and 4. His 26 wins since August put him at fourth all-time in wins as a freshman, and his 25 doubles wins is the best of any Blue Raider freshman.
"Gian really stepped it up this year," Borendame added. "Going into the fall, if I'm honest, I was unsure of what type of senior season he was going to have. To see how far he has come from his freshman and sophomore years, it is impressive."
Moonen often had the toughest chore of any of the Blue Raiders, manning the top spot in the lineup. His 9-12 record saw most of its results come at the No. 1 spot in the MT singles lineup, and notable wins came against Wichita State, Wisconsin, UTSA, and William & Mary. Morell also spent some time at the top spot, but he led MT in wins at No. 2 with 10. Overall, he was 14-7, including a 4-1 record in three-set matches this spring.
In doubles, Moonen and Edge were named to the First Team, while Morell and Miguel Negre Fernandez were listed on the Second Team. Moonen and Edge were 17-5 this season, with 16 of their wins coming at the No. 1 spot. Their spring included a 2-0 record in matches that went to a tiebreak and wins over a ranked team on three occasions. As for Morell and Negre, they were 16-3 this season, including 15 wins at No. 2. Wins over Vanderbilt, Indiana, Tulane and Drake highlighted the regular season, which ended with a seven-match win streak.
"Our doubles recognitions are really a credit to our whole team," Borendame said. "We made doubles a priority this year in practice but made sure it was quality practice instead of just loads of time on doubles. Furthermore, the whole team pushed each other in doubles and we really had 10 strong doubles players competing for the six spots on a daily basis."
Follow the Blue Raiders on Twitter, @MT_MensTennis, and Facebook, MTSU Men's Tennis, to keep up with MT throughout the year.
2017-18 Conference USA Men's Tennis Awards
Player of the Year: Aziz Kijametovic, Old Dominion
Freshman of the Year: Luca Keist, Charlotte
Newcomer of the Year: Vincent Schneider, Old Dominion
Outstanding Singles Player of the Championship: Vincent Schneider, Old Dominion
Outstanding Doubles Team of the Championship: Vincent Schneider/Jannik Geisse, Old Dominion
Coach of the Year: Dominik Mueller, Old Dominion
All-Conference USA Singles
First Team
Luca Keist, Charlotte
Remi Chancerel, Florida Atlantic
Aziz Kijametovic, Old Dominion
Adam Moundir, Old Dominion
Eric Rutledge, Rice
Tim Dollman, UAB
Second Team
Jason Legall, Florida Atlantic
Chris Edge, Middle Tennessee
Gian Issa, Middle Tennessee
Tom Moonen, Middle Tennessee
Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore, Middle Tennessee
Francois Musitelli, Old Dominion
Vincent Schneider, Old Dominion
Sumit Sarkar, Rice
Wen-Po Tseng, Southern Miss
All-Conference USA Doubles
First Team
Tom Moonen/Chris Edge, Middle Tennessee
Aziz Kijametovic/Francois Musitelli, Old Dominion
Eric Rutledge/Sumit Sarkar, Rice
Tim Dollman/Stefan Gonzalez, UAB
Second Team
Luca Keist/Constandinos Chirstoforou, Charlotte
Jason Legall/Ignacio Garcia, Florida Atlantic
Miguel Negre Fernandez/Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore, Middle Tennessee
Adam Moundir/Javier Maestre, Old Dominion
Wen-Po Tseng/Chun-Han Tsai, Southern Miss
Players Mentioned
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