June 12, 2012
LEXINGTON, Ky. — University of Kentucky men’s tennis star Eric Quigley, who just completed one of the best careers in the history of the UK program, has been named one of 16 male and female collegiate players to the 2012 United States Tennis Association Summer Collegiate Team, administered by the USTA and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, the organizations announced Tuesday.
The USTA Summer Collegiate Team is an elite training program for the top American collegiate tennis players. The program began in 1996 and is funded by the USTA. It is designed to provide college players with valuable exposure to the USTA Pro Circuit in a team-oriented environment during the summer months.
This summer, USTA player development will host two Pro Tour Transition camps – one for the men, one for the women – for the selected players. The men’s camp is being held June 7-13 on clay courts in Boca Raton, Fla., while the women’s camp will also be held in Boca Raton from June 10-14. Additional training opportunities for top American collegiate players will also occur over the summer in Boca Raton and Carson, Calif.
“This is the third year that I have had the honor to be on the USTA Summer Collegiate team and I’m really looking forward to it,” Quigley said. “There are some great players on the team this season and I am excited about going down to Boca Raton and getting in some quality time on the court.”
Bo Hodge, assistant men’s tennis coach at Oklahoma, along with Andres Pedroso, associate head coach at Virginia and Ryan Sachire, associate head coach at Notre Dame, will coach the men’s team. Hodge has coached the team since 2010, while Sachire helped last season.
Team members were selected based on their performance at the NCAA Championships, the ITA All-American Championships and the National Indoor Championships. Players’ results from the USTA Pro Circuit, ATP or WTA events were also considered. All sixteen of the players selected received 2012 ITA All-American honors.
Of the nine male members selected to the team, Quigley is the only one from the Southeastern Conference. Quigley, who joins a short list of Wildcats to be selected for the honor, is making his third consecutive appearance on the team. A full list of players selected is below.
Quigley ended the 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.
Current pros who were members of prior USTA Collegiate Teams include: James Blake, Bob and Mike Bryan, John Isner, Amer Delic, Jesse Levine, and Irina Falconi.
For more information on the Kentucky men’s tennis team, visit UKathletics.com or follow “UKMensTennis” on Twitter or “University of Kentucky men’s tennis team” on Facebook.
2012 USTA Summer Collegiate Men’s Team
Chase Buchanan, Ohio State (Senior, New Albany, Ohio)
Mitchell Frank, Virginia (Freshman, Annandale, Va.)
Jarmere Jenkins, Virginia (Junior, College Park, Ga.)
Steve Johnson, USC (Senior, Orange, Calif.)
Evan King, Michigan (Junior, Chicago)
Bradley Klahn, Stanford (Senior, Poway, Calif.)
Dennis Nevolo, Illinois (Senior, Gurnee, Ill.)
Eric Quigley, Kentucky (Senior, Pewee Valley, Ky.)
Ray Sarmiento, USC (Sophomore, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.)
