LANCASTER, Pa. – The Swarthmore College men's tennis team garnered six All-Centennial selections, the conference office announced on Friday morning. In addition,
Michael Melnikov picked up his third straight Centennial Player of the Year honor while the Garnet also earned Coaching Staff of the Year distinction.
Melnikov became just the third player in conference history to win Player of the Year three times, the first to do so in 18 years. He was named First Team Singles along with
Max Lindstrom. The pair of
Andres Fente and
Kai Chen were selected First Team Doubles. Chen also received honorable mention in singles.
Rishi Verma was chosen Second Team Singles while the duo of
Winston Zhang and Lindstrom garnered Second Team Doubles. In addition,
Max Pogorelov was Swarthmore's representative on the Centennial All-Sportsmanship Team.
Melnikov holds a 22-5 singles record and is 14-3 at the first singles position. The junior was 4-0 in conference play and won another two matches in the Centennial Tournament. All but two of his victories this year have been in straight sets. Melnikov is 20-6 in doubles play. He was selected for both singles and doubles at the NCAA Individual Championships for the third consecutive year. Melnikov was a three-time Centennial Player of the Week.
Lindstrom is 16-10 overall and went 4-0 in conference singles matches. The junior had two more victories in the Centennial Tournament and was named Tournament MVP. Fourteen of his 16 wins have been in straight sets. He was chosen the Centennial Player of the Week one time. Lindstrom and Zhang have posted an 11-1 mark as a doubles pair, going a perfect 4-0 in conference play.
Fente and Chen boast a 12-3 record to lead the Garnet. The duo is 10-3 at second doubles and 2-0 at the top flight. Chen has gone 12-3 at singles in his rookie campaign, including 4-0 in the conference. Nine of his successes have been in straight sets. Chen was named the Centennial Player of the Week twice.
Verma is 15-9 in singles competition and he went 5-0 in conference matches. All but one of his wins has been in straight sets. He was a one-time Centennial Player of the Week honoree.
The Swarthmore staff of head coach
Jason Box and assistants
Brian Kane,
Marc Fisicaro,
Davis Elkins, and
Mark Fallati '18 guided the squad to its third straight Centennial Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance. The Garnet have been ranked as high as eighth in the nation this season.
Swarthmore begins NCAA Tournament play on Saturday.
Read more: All-Centennial Men's Tennis Team
