SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Mercer’s Olivier Stuart has been named the 2019 Southern Conference Men’s Tennis Player of the Year, as announced by the league on Tuesday. Chattanooga’s Chuck Merzbacher was named the league’s Coach of the Year, earning his first nod and Chattanooga’s first since 1989, while Chattanooga’s Kerim Hyatt was tabbed Freshman of the Year. Chattanooga’s Niklas Gerdes has earned the league’s Don Bunch/Buddy Hartsell Sportsmanship Award for the second straight season. Postseason balloting was conducted by the league’s head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own student-athletes.
Stuart, who was the 2017 Freshman of the Year, is Mercer’s first SoCon Player of the Year. He finished the regular season 17-5 overall and a perfect 7-0 in the league, all at the top spot in the lineup. The three-time SoCon Player of the Week added a 13-7 overall record and 6-1 mark in doubles alongside partner Nicolas Guillon. As a result, the duo earned first-team all-conference honors in doubles play.
Merzbacher was named Coach of the Year by his peers, helping Chattanooga to a 14-10 record and 4-3 mark in league play. He is just the second Chattanooga coach to win the award, as former coach Bill Tym won in 1979 and Tommy Bartlett was recognized six times between 1980 and 1989. The Mocs earned the No. 3 seed in the upcoming SoCon Men’s Tennis Championship.
Hyatt was named Freshman of the Year after posting a 21-14 record in singles play, including a 5-2 mark in conference matches. He is the fifth Moc to earn the honor and the first since Roberto Vieira in 2010. He was 18-6 in doubles and 5-1 in conference play, all in the top spot, and he and partner Simon Bustamante were named to the all-conference first team for their efforts.
Gerdes repeats as the winner of the Don Bunch/Buddy Hartsell Sportsmanship Award. Chattanooga has won the award four of the last five years. He was 20-10 on the year and 5-2 in conference play at No. 1, good enough to also earn first-team all-conference honors.
Four other players joined Stuart and Gerdes on the first team. ETSU placed Frazier Rengifo and Sergi Fontcuberta on the squad, while Mercer added Guillon and Furman’s Ivan Mitric was honored. Rengifo was 17-2 on the season and 5-1 in conference play, falling only to Stuart in the regular-season finale. He was named the SoCon Player of the Week five times this season, setting a conference record. Fontcuberta finished regular-season play 13-6 and 5-1 in SoCon action and repeats as a first-team selection. Guillon notched a 14-10 record overall and 5-2 in league play, while Mitric, the 2018 Freshman of the Year, was 11-6 on the year and 4-3 in conference action, all in the top spot in the Paladins’ lineup.
Furman’s Mitric and Jake Munns joined Hyatt/Bustamante and Stuart/Guillon on the all-conference first team in doubles after going 11-3 on the year and 4-3 in conference action.
The all-conference second team was composed of two ETSU players, two UNCG players, and one each from Furman and Samford. ETSU’s Yusuf Khamis and Juan Lugo were selected as Khamis finished 17-2 and 7-0 in conference play and Fontcuberta tallied a 13-6 record and 5-1 league mark. Nico Grewe (11-10, 3-4 SoCon) and Ollie Palmer (10-10, 3-4) were UNCG’s honorees. Furman’s Drew Singerman was 14-0 on the year, including 5-0 in SoCon matches, while Samford’s Rossouw Norval (7-11, 1-6) rounded out the squad.
ETSU’s Fontcuberta and David Gonzalez, UNCG’s Palmer and Grewe, and Chattanooga’s Gerdes and Tomas Rodriguez were the second-team all-conference honorees for doubles.
The coaches also selected an All-Freshman Team. Hyatt was joined on the team by teammate Rodriguez, The Citadel’s Phillip Quinn, Mercer’s David Georgadze, UNCG’s Hugh Knapp and Wofford’s Bryce Keim.
The 2019 Southern Conference Men’s Tennis Championship begins Thursday, April 18, in Macon, Georgia.
2019 SoCon Men’s Tennis Postseason Awards
Player of the Year
Olivier Stuart, Mercer
Freshman of the Year
Kerim Hyatt, Chattanooga
Don Bunch/Buddy Hartsell Sportsmanship Award
Niklas Gerdes, Chattanooga
Coach of the Year
Chuck Merzbacher, Chattanooga
First Team
Singles
Sergi Fontcuberta, ETSU
Frazier Rengifo, ETSU
Ivan Mitric, Furman
Nicolas Guillon, Mercer
Olivier Stuart, Mercer
Niklas Gerdes, Chattanooga
Doubles
Ivan Mitric/Jake Munns, Furman
Nicolas Guillon/Olivier Stuart, Mercer
Kerim Hyatt/Simon Bustamante, Chattanooga
Second Team
Singles
Yusuf Khamis, ETSU
Juan Lugo, ETSU
Drew Singerman, Furman
Nico Grewe, UNCG
Ollie Palmer, UNCG
Rossouw Norval, Samford
Doubles
Sergi Fontcuberta/David Gonzalez, ETSU
Ollie Palmer/Nico Grewe, UNCG
Niklas Gerdes/Tomas Rodriguez, Chattanooga