All schools in Upshur County will close at 1 p.m. today. All B-UHS sporting events today are canceled.

WVWC’s Kobayashi named MEC Men’s Tennis Freshman of the Year; four claim all-conference laurels

BRIDGEPORT – The Mountain East Conference today announced its 2024 Men’s Tennis award winners and all-conference teams, following a vote of the league’s head coaches.

Charleston’s Jorge Perez was voted the league’s Player of the Year in 2024, while West Virginia Wesleyan’s Takuya Kobayashi earned Freshman of the Year accolades. Charleston’s Alec Foote is the league’s men’s tennis coach of the year.

Perez, a sophomore from Albacete, Spain, has a 22-3 overall record and went 5-0 in league play at the No. 1 singles spot for the Golden Eagles this season. His notable singles wins include Barry University, West Virginia Wesleyan, Fairmont State, Carson Newman, Midwestern and Flagler. He also plays at No. 1 doubles for UC, turning in a record of 17-5 overall and 4-1 in league play this season.

Kobayashi, from Tokyo, Japan, plays at No. 2 singles for the Bobcats as a freshman. Heading into this week’s conference tournament, Kobayashi holds a record of 15-3 overall and 4-1 in league play, including non-conference wins over Barton, Belmont Abbey, Edinboro and Bluefield State. In doubles, he has a record of 15-2 this season, including an unbeaten 5-0 mark in conference play at No. 2. He was also named first team All-MEC as a freshman.

Foote, UC’s second-year men’s tennis coach, led the Golden Eagles to a record of 15-2, including an unbeaten 5-0 mark in league play. Charleston is the top seed in this week’s MEC Tournament and also currently ranks first in the NCAA Atlantic Region rankings and 16th in the ITA national poll. Charleston is currently on a 10-match winning streak and had five players named to the All-MEC first and second teams this season.

In addition to announcing the individual award winners, the league also announced its all-conference teams on Friday afternoon (listed below).

2023-24 MEC Men’s Tennis Awards
Player of the Year:
 Jorge Perez, Charleston
Freshman of the Year: Takuya Kobayashi, West Va. Wesleyan
Coach of the Year: Alec Foote, Charleston

All-MEC First Team
Ruben Acuna, Charleston
Elia Barozzi, Fairmont State
German Diaz, Frostburg State
Omar Elsamahy, Charleston
Vicente Garcia, Charleston
Kihiro Karasawa, West Va. Wesleyan
Takuya Kobayashi, West Va. Wesleyan
Jorge Perez, Charleston
Kan Watanabe, Fairmont State

All-MEC Second Team
Duarte Corriea, Davis & Elkins
Johan Karlsson, West Va. State
Mika Kreisel, West Va. Wesleyan
Mohamed Moens, Fairmont State
Alexandre Pages, Fairmont State
Jowan Rawson, Charleston
Ricardo Starosta, West Va. Wesleyan

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