Motasem Al-Houni, Mohanad Al-Houni, Brad Entwistle, and Andres Saenz earn All-Conference honors in singles and doubles.
St. Peter, Minn. – As a part of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s 2015 Postseason Men’s Tennis Awards released Tuesday by the league office, four members of Head Coach Tommy Valentini’s squad earned a spot on the All-Conference Singles and Doubles Teams. Earning All-Conference honors in both singles and doubles is Motasem Al-Houni (Sr., Tripoli, Minn.), Mohanad Al-Houni (Fy., Tripoli, Minn.), Brad Entwistle (Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D.), and Andres Saenz (So., Cancun, Mexico).
The Gustavus men’s tennis team wrapped up the 2015 MIAC season with an undefeated league mark for the 30th consecutive season. At 9-0 in conference play, the Gusties secured their 27th consecutive MIAC Championship – the sixth under Tommy Valentini – and extended their MIAC winning-streak to 251 matches.
Mohanad Al-Houni
Motasem Al-Houni
Gustavus went on to earn the MIAC’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament thanks to wins over St. Thomas (5-0) and then Carleton (5-0) in the MIAC Playoffs. Ranked No. 18 in the country at 19-10 overall, the Black and Gold will be making its 28th appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Gustavus will travel to the Whitewater, Wisconsin regional to take on the winner of the Edgewood versus UW-Whitewater match in the second round on Saturday, May 9 at 10:00 a.m.
A two-time All-Conference honoree in doubles as a sophomore and singles as a junior, Motasem Al-Houni earns a place on both the singles and doubles teams in his final season wearing a Gustavus uniform. Holding down the No. 2 spot in singles, Motasem went unbeaten against conference foes with a record of 6-0 and is now currently 21-11 overall. Alongside doubles partner, Adres Saenz, the international duo was also a perfect 6-0 in league play and are currently 25-7 overall. Saenz makes his second consecutive appearance on the All-MIAC Doubles Team and his first on the All-MIAC Singles Team. He put together an MIAC record of 6-1 (19-9 O’all) playing primarily at Gustavus’s No. 3 position.
Brad Entwistle and Mohanad Al-Houni both make their first showing in the MIAC’s postseason awards. Locking down the No. 2 spot for 19 matches and playing together a total of 21 times, the pair was 7-0 against the MIAC and are now 16-5 overall. Entwistle – typically Gustavus’s No. 4 – put together a league record of 5-0 and is 15-11 overall, while Mohanad – the team’s No. 1 as of late-March – went 5-0 in league play and is 20-5 overall.
The MIAC Men’s Tennis All-Conference Singles and Doubles teams were determined using a point system for conference wins at each position, with the top 18 – including ties – recognized. This season, the All-Conference Singles Team includes 21 players and the Doubles Team includes 20 student-athletes. There were 12 student-athletes that earned both singles and doubles honors in 2015.
Andres Saenz
Brad Entwistle
The Singles Team includes four seniors, five juniors, seven sophomores and five freshmen. MIAC champion Gustavus led the way with four All-Conference singles players, followed by St. Thomas, St. Olaf and Macalester with three apiece. Carleton, Saint John’s and Bethel each had two players recognized, and Concordia and Saint Mary’s had one singles player honored apiece.
The Doubles Team features four seniors, eight juniors, five sophomores and three freshmen. Gustavus again led the way with four All-Conference Doubles selections, and Carleton, St. Olaf, St. Thomas, Macalester, Saint Mary’s, Saint John’s, Bethel and Hamline all had two doubles players recognized apiece.
As part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative, the MIAC also announced the ninth annual All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team for men’s tennis. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition. Representing Gustavus on this year’s All-Sportsmanship Team was senior Brad Entwistle.