The University of Mississippi Athletics
Gard, Chadwick Take Top SEC Honors
4/21/2004 | Men's Tennis
April 21, 2004
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Ole Miss men's tennis player Catalin Gard garnered SEC Player the Year, and head coach Billy Chadwick earned SEC Coach of the Year as the 2004 postseason awards were announced at the tournament banquet Wednesday evening. In addition, Ole Miss placed three players on the All-SEC first and second teams.
Gard, a native of Galati, Romania, is ranked No. 4 in the nation. He posted an impressive 10-1 record in the SEC at No. 1 singles and is 19-3 overall. He has won 16 of his last 17 matches and does not have a loss outside the top 10.
An All-American, Gard becomes the third Rebel to earn SEC Player of the Year honors. Ole Miss had back-to-back players of the year with former NCAA Doubles champion Mahesh Bhupathi earning the honor in 1995 and former All-American Johan Hede receiving the award in 1996.
"This is a tremendous honor and achievement for Cat," head coach Billy Chadwick said. "Every match in the SEC at No. 1 singles is like playing the finals of a national tournament, and with his record, Cat has proved he is the best. Our winning the SEC Championship is reflective of his outstanding play and leadership. We congratulate him on being named the SEC Player of the Year."
Voted on by the league's coaches, Chadwick was named SEC Coach of the Year for the second time in his career, also earning the honor in 1996, when the Rebels won their first SEC title. This is his 22nd season at Ole Miss, where he has compiled a 352-187 record. He has guided the Rebels to a No. 5 national ranking and within one win (19-3) of recording the program's sixth 20-win season. In addition to winning the overall SEC Championship, the Rebels captured their third consecutive SEC Western Division title and enter this week's SEC Tournament as the No. 1 seed.
"The SEC is the top league in the nation and tennis is arguably its strongest sport," Chadwick said. "To be named coach of the year is perhaps the highest honor one can receive in this profession, and it is particularly gratifying because it is selected by your peers."
Senior Claes Lindholm joined Gard on the All-SEC first team, while the Rebs other senior, Paul Ciorascu, made the second team. Gard and Lindholm earned first team honors for the second year in a row, while Ciorascu made the second team for the second straight year.
Lindholm, ranked No. 32 in the nation, owns an 18-3 dual match record and finished 8-3 in the SEC. He has won 19 of his last 22. Lindholm was also a finalist for the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award.
Ciorascu owns a 14-7 dual match record and is 18-3 in the SEC during his last two years, including 8-3 this season. He is ranked No. 12 in the nation in doubles with Gard.
The Rebels have had a player named to the All-SEC team 11 consecutive years. The SEC is arguably the top conference in the nation with three teams ranked in the latest top 10 and seven in the top 25.
The 2004 SEC Men's Tournament begins Thursday, April 22 and runs through Sunday, April 25 in Nasvhille, Tenn., at the Brownlee O. Currey Jr. Tennis Center. The Rebels received a first-round bye and will face the winner of the #8 Auburn/#9 Arkansas match Friday at 9:45 a.m. in the quarterfinal round.
2004 SEC MEN'S TENNIS POSTSEASON AWARDS
FIRST-TEAM ALL-SECAdrians Zguns, ArkansasGabor Zoltan, AuburnHamid Mirzadeh, FloridaBo Hodge, GeorgiaJohn Isner, GeorgiaJesse Witten, KentuckyKen Skupski, LSUCatalin Gard, Ole MissClaes Lindholm, Ole MissSimon Rea, TennesseeDamien Spizzo, TennesseeChad Harris, Vanderbilt
SECOND TEAM ALL-SECStephen Mitchell, AlabamaNathan Price, ArkansasJanne Holmia, FloridaVlad Obradovic, FloridaTigran Martirosyan, KentuckyBryan Fisher, LSUJason Hazley, LSUPaul Ciorascu, Ole MissRomain Ambert, Mississippi StateScott Brown, VanderbiltZach Dailey, VanderbiltMatt Lockin, Vanderbilt
SEC COACH OF THE YEARBilly Chadwick, Ole MissSEC PLAYER OF THE YEARCatalin Gard, Ole MissSEC FRESHMAN OF THE YEARJohn Isner, GeorgiaSEC CO-SCHOLAR-ATHLETES OF THE YEARHamid Mirzadeh, FloridaBryan Fisher, LSU
