NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk State women's tennis graduate student
Naz Karagoz was named MEAC Player of the Year, becoming the first conference player of the year in program history.
Karagoz took the conference by storm in her debut season with the Spartans, compiling a 9-1 record at No. 1 singles. In addition, the native of Istanbul, Turkey went 5-0 in conference play, helping NSU to a 4-1 mark in the Northern Division and a No. 1 seed in the upcoming MEAC Tournament.
Karagoz ended the regular season on a seven-game singles winning streak and did not drop a set against Northern Division competition.
Teaming up with
Zoe Fraser, Karagoz was equally potent at No. 1 doubles, where she went 7-2 with a 4-1 mark in conference matches.
Karagoz also collected four-straight conference player of the week honors between March 17 and April 3.
In addition to the Player of the Year accolade, Karagoz was named to the six-person all-conference first team. She becomes just the fifth member of the NSU women's tennis program to receive first team All-MEAC honors.
Bethune-Cookman's Michelle Ncube was named MEAC Rookie of the Year, and South Carolina State's Hardeep Judge received Coach of the Year recognition.
Voting was done by the conference's sports information directors and coaches.
2019 Women's Tennis All-MEAC
Player of the Year: Naz Karagoz, Norfolk State
Rookie of the Year: Michelle Ncube, Bethune-Cookman
Coach of the Year: Hardeep Judge, South Carolina State
First Team
| Name |
Class |
School |
Hometown |
| Michelle Ncube |
Fr. |
Bethune-Cookman |
Harare, Zimbabwe |
| Rachel Harden |
So. |
Florida A&M |
Augusta, Ga. |
| Haleigh Porter |
So. |
Florida A&M |
Flossmoor, Ill. |
| Naz Karagoz |
Gr. |
Norfolk State |
Istanbul, Turkey |
| Frida Cnossen |
R-So. |
N.C. Central |
Laren, Netherlands |
| Zainab Bendahhou |
So. |
S.C. State |
Casablanca, Morocco |
Second Team
| Name |
Class |
School |
Hometown |
| Rehaana Butt |
So. |
Bethune-Cookman |
Palm Harbor, Fla. |
| Peggy Rooke |
Sr. |
Morgan State |
Malmo, Sweden |
| Asmara Rose |
So. |
Morgan State |
Baltimore, Md. |
| Fabiana Ramirez |
Sr. |
N.C. A&T |
Nueva Bolivia, Venezuela |
| Maru Berghaus |
So. |
N.C. Central |
Cologne, Germany |
| Divya Murali |
Fr. |
S.C. State |
Chennai, India |
