Three Gators Awarded SEC Yearly Honors
Thursday, April 23, 2015 | Men's Tennis
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Junior Diego Hidalgo was named First Team All-SEC, while sophomore Elliott Orkin was named to the Second Team and freshman Chase Perez-Blanco earned All-Freshman honors, the league announced Thursday.
Hidalgo's First Team honor is the first SEC yearly award of his career. The junior from Guayaquil, Ecuador, was promoted to the No. 1 singles position at the start of conference action and posted a 4-3 record at the top spot. Overall, Hidalgo went 10-4 in dual match singles this season. He also competed at the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles positions throughout the season with fellow junior Gordon Watson. Hidalgo was named the SEC Player of the Week on Feb. 11 after clinching a 4-2 victory over in-state rival Florida State.
Orkin, an All-Freshman selection last season, boasts an 8-2 SEC singles record playing primarily at the No. 2 position. He clinched three SEC matches for the Gators, including UF's 4-2 victory over a top-25 LSU squad. Orkin and doubles partner Maxx Lipman played at the No. 1 doubles position throughout the majority of the conference season and went 8-2 in SEC doubles.
Perez-Blanco, a rookie from Miami, Fla., earned a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team for leading the Orange and Blue with an outstanding 8-1 SEC singles record at the No. 4 and No. 5 positions. Perez-Blanco went 14-2 overall during the dual match season and was named SEC Freshman of the Week twice this year. He has posted a point for the Gators in six of their last seven victories and has clinched two conference matches for Florida.
First Team All-SEC
Lukas Ollert, Auburn
Diego Hidalgo, Florida
Ben Wagland, Georgia
Austin Smith, Georgia
Nathan Pasha, Georgia
Wayne Montgomery, Georgia
Jordan Daigle, LSU
Stefan Lindmark, Ole Miss
Nik Scholtz, Ole Miss
Florian Lakat, Mississippi State
Mikelis Libietis, Tennessee
Jeremy Efferding, Texas A&M
Gonzales Austin, Vanderbilt
Second Team All-SEC
Giammarco Micolani, Arkansas
Elliott Orkin, Florida
Beck Pennington, Kentucky
Chris Simpson, LSU
Gustav Hansson, Ole Miss
Rishab Agarwal, Mississippi State
Mate Cutura, Mississippi State
Juan Cruz Estevarena, Mississippi State
Kyle Koch, South Carolina
AJ Catanzariti, Texas A&M
Arthur Rinderknech, Texas A&M
Shane Vinsant, Texas A&M
Daniel Valent, Texas A&M
All-Freshman
Korey Lovett, Alabama
Chase Perez-Blanco, Florida
Wayne Montgomery, Georgia
Gustav Hansson, Ole Miss
Juan Cruz Estevarena, Mississippi State
AJ Catanzariti, Texas A&M
Arthur Rinderknech, Texas A&M
Daniel Valent, Vanderbilt
FOLLOW THE GATORS:
