PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The American Athletic Conference announced its men’s tennis regular-season awards on Thursday. USF sophomore Roberto Cid was unanimously named Player of the Year, while his coach Matt Hill was named Coach of the Year. UCF’s Inaki Espindola earned Freshman of the Year accolades.
Cid was named Player of the Year after he turned in a 19-3 record at No. 1 singles for USF, leading the Bulls to an 18-6 record, the American Athletic Conference title and a spot in the NCAA Championship. Ranked No. 45 by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, Cid is the top-ranked singles player in the conference. Cid was named the Most Outstanding Player at the American Athletic Conference Championship, where he posted a combined 4-0 record to lead the No. 2-seeded Bulls to the team title. Cid was named Conference Player of the Week a league high three times and was an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division I singles championship.
Espindola was named The American’s top freshman after a season in which he registered a 14-6 singles record and an 11-4 mark in doubles. The freshman played most of the campaign at No. 4 and No. 5. Espindola had a seven-match unbeaten streak through the middle of the season, which included victories over opponents from No. 68 Georgia State, No. 64 Buffalo, and No. 27 Penn State. His three-set wins against Georgia State and Troy clinched victories for the Knights.
Hill was named The American’s Coach of the Year after he led the Bulls to the conference title and a spot in the NCAA Championship. USF takes an 18-6 record into its NCAA tournament appearance since 2009. The Bulls are ranked No. 22 in the nation, highest among American Athletic Conference schools.
The American also named seven singles players and seven doubles players to the All-Conference Team. Cid and Memphis’ Joe Salisbury were the only players to be named All-Conference in both singles and doubles. USF, Memphis, and Louisville all had three players each recognized, along with two athletes from SMU and one from UCF.
American Athletic Conference Player of the Year
Roberto Cid, So., USF *
American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year
Inaki Espindola, UCF
American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year
Matt Hill, USF
All-Conference Team
Singles
Francesc Aulina, Jr., UCF
Sebastian Stiefelmeyer, Jr., Louisville
Connor Glennon, Jr., Memphis
Joe Salisbury, Sr., Memphis
Arturs Kazijevs, Jr., SMU *
Roberto Cid, So., USF *
Oliver Pramming, Jr., USF
Doubles
Roberto Cid, So., USF
Sasha Gozun, Fr., USF *
Mischa Nowicki, Sr., SMU
David O’Hare, Sr., Memphis *
Joe Salisbury, Sr., Memphis
Chris Simich, Jr., Louisville
Albert Wagner, Jr., Louisville
* unanimous selection