JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Following a successful season under first-year head coach Jon Parker, three Eagles have earned all-conference recognition ahead of the SAC Tournament.
Marnix Van Dalen headlines C-N. Following his impressive season in the No. 1 spot, Van Dalen earned a first-team all-conference nod in singles. Van Dalen posted a 15-8 mark, going 10-1 in SAC play in the top spot for the Eagles, finishing the season on an eight-match winning streak. Among the eight matches, three came against ranked teams, including a win over Tusculum's Nemanja Subanovic to help C-N earn its first win over the Pioneers since 2006. In addition to Van Dalen's successful senior season, he was named the SAC Player of the Week for the first time in his career, following a 4-0 mark between the No. 1 singles and doubles courts against Anderson and Coker.
Marc Janse earned the second-team all-conference selection in singles, posting a stellar 17-4 record with a 9-2 mark in SAC play. It was quite the 1-2 punch between Van Dalen and Janse all season long, as Janse also finished the season with eight straight wins to propel C-N down the stretch. In the three-match stretch where C-N saw three of the SAC's best in Tusculum, Wingate, and Lincoln Memorial, Janse pulled off a trio of three-set wins to help the Eagles secure two of the three matches against the upper echelon of the conference.
On the doubles court, Van Dalen is joined by teammate Lars Hordijk on the second-team. C-N's top duo was named to the preseason second-team and lived up to that billing, going 13-9 and 8-3 in SAC play against the conference's top pairings. Hordijk and Van Dalen won six of their last eight matches down the stretch, helping push C-N to an impressive mark.
The all-conference selections and the rest of the Eagles have helped C-N to a 12-5 record and a 10-2 mark in conference play. It finished the regular season in third place behind only Wingate and Catawba.
The stellar play under Parker has moved C-N all the way up to No. 30, its highest ranking of the season. With several all-conference selections under their belt and a stellar regular season, the Eagles will look to take the momentum into postseason play, facing off with 5th-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne on Thursday at 9 AM at the Palmetto Tennis Center in Sumter, South Carolina.
