Bearcats tennis dominates CUNYAC all-star awards

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CUNY Athletics

Dani Heba, Sports Editor

The Baruch College Bearcats men’s tennis team dominated the CUNY Athletic Conference’s 2022 All-Star list, announced on May 3 en route to their CUNYAC championship win.

Christopher Tham, a junior at Baruch, was named the CUNYAC Player of the Year. He boasted an 8-1 overall singles record and a 7-1 overall record in the No. 1 slot. His only loss was against the highly competitive New Jersey City Gothic Knights on March 15.

Tham was also named to the CUNYAC All-Star First Team.

In addition to his player of the year and first team selections, Tham was also named CUNYAC Finals MVP following Baruch’s championship sweep versus the Hunter College Hawks, capping off a dominant season for Tham.

“Player of the Year is the biggest honor any athlete can obtain,” Tham told CUNY Athletics. “All year long, even the offseason, so many of us are working hard to be the best version of ourselves on and off the court so we can win prestigious awards just like this one.”

Nicholas Santiago, a freshman at Baruch, won the CUNYAC Rookie of the Year award following a 9-1 singles record and 8-2 doubles record in the regular season.

“I am very grateful for this award,” Santiago told CUNY Athletics. “I would like to thank my teammates, coaches, the athletic department and my family for all the support this year. I appreciate all of you.”

Head Coach Gregory Wyzykowski won CUNYAC Coach of the Year award. He took over the Bearcats coaching role in 2018 and has won all three of the CUNYAC championships in the seasons he has coached.

“It is an honor to be named Men’s Tennis Coach of the Year,” Wyzykowski said. “The support of Heather, our Athletic Director, the entire athletic department as well as the hard work of my assistant coach Annie and all the members of the men’s tennis team make it possible. Thank you to all who have supported us this season.”

The Bearcats’ Hudson Kaylie was named to the All-Sportsmanship Team.

Baruch dominated the CUNYAC All-Star First Team selections, with three out of the five team members being Bearcats.

Jim Bauer and Abhinav Srivastava were also named to the first team. Santiago was named to the second team.

The Bearcats’ nominations come on the heels of a successful season. The team has won its fourth straight CUNYAC championship following its May 5 victory over Hunter in the finals to win its ninth straight game. The team was 3-0 in the CUNYAC and 11-3 overall.

The Bearcats will look to carry their momentum from these All-Star nominations and their finals win into the NCAA Division III tournament, which will be played on the weekend of May 13.