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Ohio Dominican’s Espana-Perez Tabbed “Freshman of the Year,” SVSU’s Major Named “Coach of the Year”
BAY CITY, Mich.- Wayne State University senior Sharon Gill (Windsor, Ontario/Academie Ste. Cecile) was named the 2010 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) women’s tennis “Player of the Year” by the league’s head coaches in all-conference balloting. The coaches named Ohio Dominican University’s Sofia Espana-Perez (Mexico City, Mexico/Bachillerato Alexander Bain) the league’s “Freshman of the Year,” while Mike Major, head coach of the Saginaw Valley State University team, earned GLIAC “Coach of the Year” honors.
Gill was 5-0 in her matches at the GLIAC Women’s
Tennis Tournament, capping off a sensational first half of the 2010
season. After suffering a loss in each the singles and doubles
events at the ITA Midwest Regional in mid-September, Gill
responded, going a perfect 17-0 the remainder of the fall
schedule.
For the season, Gill is 13-2 in singles play
and 16-1 in doubles with partner Kristina Goranskaya. The duo went
undefeated (13-0) in conference play and has triumphed in 26 of
their past 27 matches together, including the past nine. Their only
loss came at the ITA Midwest Regional to the No. 1 doubles team
from Grand Valley State University, the Midwest Region champions.
So far, their .941 winning percentage is a Wayne State
single-season best.
Gill is the WSU record-holder for most singles
(77) and doubles (72) wins in a career. In 2008-09, she broke the
record for most singles wins (23) in a season.
Espana-Perez finished her freshman season with a
12-6 record in singles play and an identical 12-6 record in
doubles. She posted a 10-5 mark at first singles this fall,
including 6-4 in GLIAC play and victories over Grand Valley State
and Northwood University, the top two teams in the conference.
Espana-Perez teamed with Aline Mariano at first doubles for a 10-5
mark, also going 6-4 in GLIAC play. The duo reached the ITA Midwest
Regional Quarterfinals, and Espana-Perez also advanced to the
quarterfinals in singles play.
Major’s selection as the 2010 GLIAC Women’s
Tennis “Coach of the Year” marked the first time for
SVSU since Jim Teal garnered the same honors in the 1999
season. SVSU finished the 2010 season in seventh place,
matching the team’s best finish with Major at the helm.
Three Cardinals garnered All-GLIAC honors for the 2010 season, as
sophomore Yunjiao Shangguan (Chengdu, China/Shiyang HS) was named
to the First Team, finishing the season with a No. 1 singles record
of 7-5 and No. 1 doubles record of 6-7. Senior Cortney
Heileman (East China, Mich./St. Clair HS) and freshman Andrea
Calhoun (Midland, Mich.) both earned Honorable Mention
recognition.
Joining Gill and Espana-Perez on the 2010 All-GLIAC Women’s Tennis First Team are: Wayne State junior Kristina Goranskaya; Ashland University junior Victoria Goudy; Saginaw Valley State sophomore Yunjiao Shangguan; Grand Valley State freshman Niki Shipman; Ferris State University senior Alina Stanila; Northwood sophomore Svenja Stephan; and Michigan Technological University junior Ploy Suthijindawong.
A complete list of the 2010 All-GLIAC women’s tennis teams are below:
2010 GLIAC Women’s Tennis Postseason Awards |
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Player of the Year: Sharon Gill - Wayne State |
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Freshman of the Year: Sofia Espana-Perez - Ohio Dominican |
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Coach of the Year: Mike Major - Saginaw Valley State |
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2010 All-GLIAC Women’s Tennis Teams |
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First-Team |
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|
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown/High School |
|
Sofia Espana-Perez |
Ohio Dominican |
Fr. |
Mexico City, Mexico/Bachillerato Alexander Bain |
|
Sharon Gill |
Wayne State |
Sr. |
Windsor, Ontario/Academie Ste. Cecile |
|
Kristina Goranskaya |
Wayne State |
Jr. |
Thornhill, Ontario/Northview Heights |
|
Victoria Goudy |
Ashland |
Jr. |
Mansfield, Ohio/Lexington |
|
Yunjiao Shangguan |
Saginaw Valley State |
So. |
Chengdu, China/Shiyang |
|
Niki Shipman |
Grand Valley |
Fr. |
Saline, Mich. |
|
Alina Stanila |
Ferris State |
Sr. |
Alexandria, Romania/ Technical |
|
Svenja Stephan |
Northwood |
So. |
Hamburg, Germany |
|
Ploy Suthijindawong |
Michigan Tech |
Jr. |
Bangkok, Thailand/Duluth Central |
|
|
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|
Second-Team |
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|
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown/High School |
|
Malaiaka Bora-Messi |
Tiffin |
So. |
Yaounde, Cameroon |
|
Paige Cooper |
Ashland |
Jr. |
Mansfield, Ohio/Lexington |
|
Adrienne DeVito |
Lake Superior State |
Jr. |
Washington, Mich. |
|
Tara Hayes |
Grand Valley State |
Jr. |
Shelby, Twp., Mich. |
|
Amy Ingle |
Ferris State |
Sr. |
Battle Creek, Mich./Hastings |
|
Chelsea Johnston |
Grand Valley State |
Sr. |
Novi, Mich./Northville |
|
Natalia Lebedeva |
Michigan Tech |
Fr. |
Nakhodka, Russia |
|
Charlotte Sevin |
Northwood |
Sr. |
Noisy-Sur-Ecole, France |
|
Erika Sullivan |
Ashland |
So. |
Broadview Heights, Ohio/Brecksville |
|
|
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Honorable Mention |
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|
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown/High School |
|
Kaitlynn Hutchinson |
Lake Superior State |
Fr. |
Cadillac, Mich. |
|
Darylann Trout |
Grand Valley State |
Sr. |
Clarkston, Mich. |
|
Andrea Calhoun |
Saginaw Valley State |
Fr. |
Midland, Mich. |
|
Anne-Sophie Goujet |
Northwood |
Jr. |
Vetraz-Nonthoux, France |
|
Lexi Rice |
Grand Valley State |
Fr. |
Augusta, Mich./Gull Lake |
|
Cortney Heileman |
Saginaw Valley State |
Sr. |
East China, Mich./St. Clair |
|
Nathalia Rondelli |
Michigan Tech |
Sr. |
Macae, Brazil |
|
Alexandra Ware |
Ashland |
Sr. |
Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth Salem |
|
Tiffany Rheynard |
Ferris State |
Sr. |
Kalamazoo, Mich./Gull Lake |
|
McCall Monte |
Wayne State |
Sr. |
Grosse Pointe Park, Mich./South |
|
Haley Dudon |
Findlay |
Sr. |
Dayton, Ohio |
|
Ruchika Alahakoon |
Ohio Dominican |
Sr. |
Colombo, Sri Lanka/Ladies College |
| Taylor Cooper | Tiffin | Jr. | Mansfield, Ohio |
| Jordyn Parrigan | Lake Erie | Fr. | Shelby, Ohio |