NORFOLK, Va. – Junior Arsenio Culver of the Norfolk State men's tennis team was named to the All-MEAC First Team, while fellow junior Ben Marks earned a spot on the second team in an announcement by the conference office on the eve of the MEAC Championships.
Culver joined a trio of players from both Florida A&M and South Carolina State on the first team – thanks to a tie in the voting – while Marks was one of six players who garnered second-team accolades. Voting was done by the conference head coaches and sports information directors.
A native of Philadelphia, Culver stands 10-7 overall in singles this year as NSU's No. 1 player. He went 3-2 against opponents from MEAC schools and picked up wins over the top players from Richmond, Temple and James Madison. A two-time MEAC Player of the Week this year, Culver also owns a 9-5 record in doubles, including 9-4 at No. 1 doubles with Marks.
Marks, who hails from Worcestershire, England, stands 7-11 overall this year in singles and 6-11 as NSU's No. 2 player. Like Culver, Marks also owns a 9-5 overall doubles mark, including 9-4 with his fellow all-MEAC performer as NSU's top tandem. He and Culver have won seven of their last eight doubles matches together.
Culver was named to the All-MEAC First Team for the second year in a row after his outstanding sophomore season in which he finished 20th in the Atlantic Region in the final Campbell/ITA Regional rankings.
South Carolina State swept the player and rookie of the year awards for both the men and women, as the Bulldogs had 10 players – five men, five women – earn All-MEAC honors. Howard's Larry Strickland won both Coach of the Year awards.
The 2011 MEAC Championships get underway Friday at the Millbrook Tennis Center in Raleigh, N.C. The Spartans will face Howard on both the men's and women's side. The NSU women compete at 8:30 a.m., while the men hit the court at noon on Friday.
2011 MEAC All-Conference Teams
Women
First Team
Name School Class Hometown
Alexis Brown Florida A&M Junior Eagan, Minn.
Katelyn Stokes Howard Freshman Landham, Md.
Maria Craciun South Carolina State Sophomore Romania
Akilah James South Carolina State Freshman New York, N.Y.
Sabrina Mendez South Carolina State Junior Spain
Daria Sekerina South Carolina State Senior Russia
Second Team
Name School Class Hometown
Katarina Szabova Bethune-Cookman Junior Komarno, Slovakia
Marina Sicic Delaware State Sophomore Belgrade, Serbia
Kathline Durden Florida A&M Junior Antioch, Tenn.
Brooke Hawthorne Howard Freshman Atlanta, Ga.
Brittney Morgan Howard Sophomore Beverly Hills, Calif.
Laura Bosneag South Carolina State Sophomore Romania
Player of the Year: Daria Sekerina, South Carolina State
Rookie of the Year: Akilah James, South Carolina State
Coach of the Year: Larry Strickland, Howard
Men
First Team
Name School Class Hometown
Gabriel Chidi Florida A&M Sophomore Piscataway, N.J.
Levan Clark Florida A&M Junior Orlando, Fla.
Takura Happy* Florida A&M Sophomore Mutare, Zimbabwe
Arsenio Culver Norfolk State Junior Philadelphia, Pa.
Dmytro Kovalevych South Carolina State Junior Ukraine
Aton Protsenko South Carolina State Sophomore Ukraine
Peteris Vinogradous* South Carolina State Sophomore Latvia
Second Team
Name School Class Hometown
Marc Misanovic Bethune-Cookman Junior Ljubljana, Slovenia
Maurice Wamukowa Florida A&M Senior Nairobi, Kenya
Christopher Brown Howard Senior Los Angeles, Calilf.
Ben Marks Norfolk State Junior Worcestershire, England
Gabriel Meana South Carolina State Senior Spain
Artemiy Nikitin South Carolina State Freshman Russia
[*] Indicates tie
Player of the Year: Dymtro Kovalevych, South Carolina State
Rookie of the Year: Artemiy Nikitin, South Carolina State
Coach of the Year: Larry Strickland, Howard
