Cobras Named ITA All-Academic Team; Six Players Earned ITA Scholar-Athlete Accolades

TEMPE, Ariz. - The Coker College men's tennis team has been named an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team, the association announced today. Also, six players from the 2016-17 roster were named ITA Scholar-Athletes. In all, 720 teams and 3,908 student-athletes across all five divisions of college tennis were honored.

The ITA All-Academic Team award is open to any ITA program that has a cumulative team grade point average of 3.20 or above (on a 4.00 scale). All varsity letter winners were factored into the cumulative team GPA for the current academic year (including fall 2016 and spring 2017).

As a unit, the Coker men's tennis team collected a 3.64 GPA during 2016-17 academic year. On the court, the Navy and Gold finished the season with an 8-12 record this past season.

Dominic Allen, Simon Bergom, Henrik Hellbe, Hunter Horton, Felix Schweyer, and Mark Watt were all named ITA scholar athletes.

"I am extremely proud of our men's team on being selected as an ITA All-Academic team, and I'm thrilled to see so many individuals earning individual scholar-athlete awards," said head tennis coach Bill Simpson. "They are preparing themselves for a great future and are laying the groundwork in creating a team identity that includes athletic and academic excellence."

In order to earn ITA Scholar-Athlete status a player must meet the following criteria: 1.) be a varsity letter winner, 2.) have a grade point average of at least 3.50 (on a 4.00 scale) for the current academic year, and 3.) have been enrolled at their present school for at least 2 semesters (including freshman through senior year).

Allen is a rising senior from Marietta, Ga. He is a graphic design major and finished with a 3.52 GPA during the 2016-17 academic year. On the court, he won five matches in singles play, including one in conference competition. Allen competed at No. 5 and No. 6 singles for the Cobras and played to an 11-9 record in doubles play.

Bergbom, a rising senior from Stockholm, Sweden, earned a 3.9 GPA during the 2016-17 academic year. He picked up three singles wins; all of them in conference play in 2016-2017. Bergbom alternated between No. 4 and No. 5 singles, while also winning six matches in doubles play.

Hellbe is also a rising senior from Stockholm, Sweden. He finished the 2016-17 year with a 3.97 GPA and majors in business. On the court, Hellbe earned four singles wins on the year with one in conference play. He competed at No. 1, 2, and 4 singles during the season. In addition, Hellbe finished 10-10 in doubles play.

Horton is a rising sophomore from Lugoff, S.C. and majors in sports management. In the classroom, Horton accumulated a 4.0 GPA during the 2016-17 academic year. He finished second on the team in wins with 11 during his rookie campaign. Horton picked up six victories in SAC play and posted a 10-10 record in doubles play.

Schweyer is a rising senior from Bavaria, Germany. He finished with a 3.9 GPA during the 2016-17 academic year. On the court, Schweyer won a team-high 12 singles matches in 2016-2017 with five of them coming in conference play. He competed in several different singles slots, which was highlighted a 6-0 mark at the No. 4 spot.

Watt, a rising senior from Glasgow, Scotland, finished the 2016-17 academic year with a 4.0 GPA. He captured a team-high 12 singles wins this season, including four in conference play. In addition, Watt played to an 11-7 mark in doubles play, including five conference wins.