Rebel Duo Earns All-SEC Honors

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. Ole Miss women’s tennis freshman Kristi Boxx was named to the All-SEC first team, while sophomore Karen Nijssen earned second team honors as the 2009 women’s tennis yearly awards were announced by the conference office Tuesday.  Boxx was also one of five players named to the All-Freshman Team.

“To have two people on the All-SEC team, one on the first team and one on the second team is a great honor,” head coach Mark Beyers said.  “This league is so strong, with so many good players.  This is a well-deserved honor for both Kristi and Karen.  They did a great job playing at the top of the lineup in singles and doubles and provided us with a lot of wins.”

A native of Grenada, Miss., Boxx is currently ranked No. 33 in the nation in singles and No. 25 in doubles with Nijssen.  She leads the team with a 26-8 overall record, 11-4 at No. 1 singles.  Boxx went 7-4 in the SEC in becoming the third freshman under head coach Mark Beyers to earn All-SEC honors.

Nijssen, a native of Holland, earned second team honors for the second year in a row.  She owns an 8-7 record at No. 2 singles and teams with Kristi Boxx for a 13-5 record at No. 1 doubles.  Nijssen is presently ranked No. 69 in singles.  She clinched Ole Miss’ 20th straight win against Mississippi State and has won three in a row and four of her last five.

Both Boxx and Nijssen have helped the Rebels to their best season since 2005, as they were ranked in the top 25 last week and are currently No. 26.  The team also finished second in the SEC West at 5-6, their best league finish since 2005. 

Ole Miss travels Fayetteville, Ark., this week for the SEC Tournament Championship hosted by the University of Arkansas.   The Rebels earned the No. 7 seed, and will face the No. 10 seed, LSU, Thursday at 12:30 p.m.

The Rebels defeated LSU 5-2 earlier this season in Oxford. The Lady Tigers are ranked No. 23 with a 13-9 overall record, 3-7 in the SEC.

To follow the team during the championship go to www.OleMissSports.com and click on the link in the calendar box.

Coach of the Year:  Mike Patrick and Sonia Hahn-Patrick, Tennessee

Player of the Year: Aurelija Miseviciute, Arkansas

Freshman of the Year: Chelsey Gullickson, Georgia

Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Aurelija Miseviciute, Arkansas

 

All-SEC First Team

Aurelija Miseviciute, Arkansas*

Fani Chifchieva, Auburn*

Alex Haney, Auburn

Marrit Boonstra, Florida*

Joanna Mather, Florida

Anastasia Revzina, Florida

Nadja Gilchrist, Georgia

Monika Dancevic, Georgia

Chelsey Gullickson, Georgia

Megan Falcon, LSU*

Kristi Boxx, Ole Miss

Ana Marija Zubori, South Carolina

Caitlin Whoriskey, Tennessee

All-SEC Second Team

Tiffany Welcher, Alabama

Ela Kaluder, Arkansas

Anouk Tigu, Arkansas

Jessica Alexander, Florida

Cameron Ellis, Georgia

Yvette Hyndman, Georgia

Naoko Ueshima, Georgia

Karen Nijssen, Ole Miss

Gira Schofield, South Carolina

Samantha Orlin, Tennessee

Natalie Pluskota, Tennessee

Catherine Newman, Vanderbilt

Jackie Wu, Vanderbilt

All-Freshman Team

Joanna Mather, Florida

Chelsey Gullickson, Georgia*

Nadja Gilchrist, Georgia

Kristi Boxx, Ole Miss

Natalie Pluskota, Tennessee

*unanimous

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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