July 6, 2012
LEXINGTON, Ky. — University of Kentucky men’s tennis star Eric Quigley, who recently completed one of the best careers in school history, has received yet another honor from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association after being named to the 2012 ITA Collegiate All-Star Team, it was announced Friday.
This is the 29th edition of the ITA Collegiate All-Star Team with Quigley becoming the first player in school history to be honored with an appearance on the team. This is the second time that Quigley has been honored by the ITA this summer after being named to the ITA Summer Collegiate Team for the third consecutive year back in June.
“We have had a lot of great players come through this program so for Eric to be the first player in school history to make this team is a great accomplishment,” UK head coach Dennis Emery said. “This is another great opportunity that Eric will have and I know it’s a huge honor for him.”
The ITA Collegiate All-Star Team includes the nation’s top-ranked men’s and women’s tennis players from the season-ending Campbell/ITA College Tennis Rankings at the NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and NJCAA levels, as well as winners from the 2011 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships and 2012 NCAA Championships.
Division I singles players that will join Quigley on the team are NCAA Singles Champion Steve Johnson of Southern California and USTA/ITA National Indoor Champion Mitchell Frank of Virginia. Chase Buchanan and Blaz Rola of Ohio State, Johnson and Roberto Quirez of USC and Raony Carvalho and Gonzalo Escobar of Texas Tech were named as Division I doubles tandems. A complete list of both male and female team members can be found at ITATennis.com.
Quigley ended the 2012 season ranked third in the nation in singles by the ITA and eighth overall in doubles with sophomore Panav Jha. The No. 3 final ranking in singles was the highest for a UK player since All-American Jesse Witten finished third at the end of the 2005 season. Quigley became a five-time All-American this season, earning honors in both singles and doubles to become the second player in school history to receive five All-American honors.
Quigley had a fantastic senior season for Kentucky, posting a 54-8 record in singles action, including a 26-2 mark in dual matches. The native of Pewee Valley, Ky., concluded his career in style by earning a runner-up finish at the 2012 NCAA Singles Championship, becoming only the third player in school history to advance to the singles final. Quigley’s win total in 2012 was the highest in school history while he ends his UK career with a 172-47 record to become the winnningest singles player in school history. Quigley, who won 38 matches against ranked foes in 2011-12, earned countless awards this season, including Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and the ITA Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award.
For more information on the Kentucky men’s tennis team, follow “UKMensTennis” on Twitter and “University of Kentucky men’s tennis team” on Facebook.
