The University of Mississippi Athletics
Four Rebel Netters Earn All-SEC Honors
4/28/2010 | Women's Tennis
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Ole Miss women's tennis players Kristi Boxx, Connor Vogel, Karen Nijssen and Laura van de Stroet earned All-SEC honors as the SEC yearly awards were announced Wednesday.
Boxx and Vogel made the first team, while Nijssen and van de Stroet were on the second team.
All four helped lead the Rebels to their first ever outright SEC Western Division Championship, their best record in the SEC (8-3) since 2000 and their best finish (2nd) since 1999. Ole Miss is currently ranked No. 16 in the nation.
"To have four players on the All-SEC Team is outstanding," head coach Mark Beyers said. "We obviously had a great year. All these girls are very deserving of this honor. They all stepped up at different times this year to give us some big wins and help us go 8-3 in the SEC and earn the No. 2 seed (in the tournament). They have worked very hard, and we are proud of them."
A native of Grenada, Miss., Boxx was one of seven players to earn All-SEC first team honors for the second year in a row. She is ranked No. 41 in the nation in singles and No. 12 in doubles. Boxx was recently named to the first ever SEC All-Tournament Team after leading the Rebels to the semifinals for the second consecutive year.
Vogel, in her first year playing for the Rebels after transferring from Tennessee, posted a 9-1 league record and is one win away from her 30th of the year. The Germantown, Tenn., native also went 7-4 in the SEC in doubles. Vogel clinched the win over then No. 13 ranked Georgia during the regular season and the win over Arkansas to put the team in the SEC Tournament semifinals.
Nijssen, a native of Heerhoguwaard, Holland, earned second team honors for the third year in a row. She owns an 11-7 dual match record and went 6-4 in the SEC. Nijssen teams with Boxx for a 14-5 record at No. 1 doubles.
A native of Waalre, Holland, van de Stroet boasts a 15-4 dual match record, which includes a 9-2 mark in the SEC. She also finished 10-1 in doubles in conference play.
The four All-SEC honorees equals the most ever by the Rebels, who also had four in 1997 and 1999.
The Rebels are hoping to be one of 16 host sites for the NCAA first and second rounds. The 64-team bracket and host sites will be revealed Tuesday, May 4 on ESPNews.
Coach of the Year: Roland Thornqvist, Florida
Player of the Year: Lauren Embree, Florida
Freshman of the Year: Allie Will, Florida
Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Catherine Newman, Vanderbilt
All-SEC First Team
Anouk Tigu, Arkansas
Fani Chifchieva, Auburn
Marrit Boonstra, Florida
Allie Will, Florida
Lauren Embree, Florida
Chelsey Gullickson, Georgia
Nadja Gilchrist, Georgia
Kristi Boxx, Ole Miss
Connor Vogel, Ole Miss
Ana Marija Zubori, South Carolina
Caitlin Whoriskey, Tennessee
Catherine Newman, Vanderbilt
All-SEC Second Team
Alexa Gurachi, Alabama
Courtney McClane, Alabama
Dijana Stojic, South Carolina
Anastsia Revzina, Florida
Yvette Hyndman, Georgia
Christine Johnson, Kentucky
Keri Frankenberger, LSU
Karen Nijssen, Ole Miss
Laura van de Stroet, Ole Miss
Rosalia Alda, Tennessee
Maria Sorbello, Tennessee
Zsofia Zubor, Tennessee
Chelsea Preeg, Vanderbilt
All-Freshman Team
Lauren Embree, Florida
Allie Will, Florida
Kelsey Sundaram, Arkansas
Keri Frankenberger, LSU
Alexa Guarachi, Alabama
