CLARKS SUMMIT, Pa. – The North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) wrapped up its two-day North Atlantic Conference (NAC) West Division* championships with individual tournament play Sunday, which consisted of the top-four seeded student-athletes for first through sixth singles and first through third doubles.

Each flight saw the No. 1 seed take on the No. 4 seed and the No. 2 seed take on the No. 3 seed. The first-round winners advanced to the championship round, which produced six singles position champions and three doubles position champions, with those student-athletes also making up the All-Conference First Team.  The runners-up from those flights made up the All-Conference Second Team, while the All-Conference Third Team consisted of the winners of each flight from the consolation bracket.  All three All-Conference teams can be viewed on page 2 below.

The NEAC also announced its individual award winners at the conclusion of the two-day tournament, which was held this Saturday and Sunday at the Birchwood Tennis Club in Clarks Summit, Pa.

Penn State Berks sophomore Drew Weinhold (Denver, Pa.) earned his second straight Player of the Year honor after an excellent performance at today’s tournament.  Weinhold, who was also last season’s Rookie of the Year, defeated sophomore Terry Long (Haddon Heights, N.J.) 6-0, 6-3 in the first round of first singles play before taking down Penn State Abington freshman Mike Herman (Philadelphia, Pa.) 6-3, 7-5 in the finals to claim the award, which annually goes to the winner of the first singles flight.  The honor capped off a fantastic season for Weinhold, as he went 4-0 in conference play in both first singles and first doubles during the regular season, while finishing 9-7 overall in both flights in addition to winning one NEAC Player of the Week selection.

Herman went on to be selected by the conference coaches as the NEAC Rookie of the Year.  Herman worked his way up to Abington’s No. 1 singles position during the season and finished 3-1 in NEAC play while also matching that record in third doubles.  He finished with a combined overall record of 6-3 out of first and second singles in addition to going 5-4 overall in doubles action. 

Herman’s coach, David Sheaffer, was voted by his peers as the NEAC Coach of the Year after guiding Abington to a fantastic season.  Sheaffer led his squad to the NAC West Divisional title Saturday as the No. 2 seed in the four-team tournament, while leading the team to a 10-5 overall record (3-1 NAC West).

The Nittany Lions will next take on the eventual NAC East Division* champion, which will be determined after Sunday’s four-team tournament hosted by the top-seeded Colby-Sawyer College Chargers (click here for a full preview). The two divisional champions will meet next weekend at a site yet to be determined, with the winner of that match being crowned the conference champion and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

 

All-Conference Team Selections

*************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************The North Eastern Athletic Conference has twelve NCAA Division III member institutions which include: Cazenovia College, College of St. Elizabeth, Gallaudet University, Keuka College, Lancaster Bible College, Pennsylvania State University - Abington, Pennsylvania State University - Berks, SUNY Cobleskill, SUNY Institute of Technology, SUNY Morrisville State College, Wells College, and Wilson College.  Bryn Athyn College and Pennsylvania College of the Technology will both join the conference as full members in 2014-15.  Associate members are: Cedar Crest College (W Swimming), D’Youville College (M Volleyball), Hilbert College (M Lacrosse & M Volleyball), Medaille College (M&W Lacrosse & M Volleyball), Penn State Altoona (M Volleyball) and Rutgers University - Camden (M Golf & M Tennis).  The North Eastern Athletic Conference has partnered with the North Atlantic Conference in the sports of men’s and women’s tennis. 

*Beginning with the 2010 season, the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) has partnered with the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) in the sport of men’s and women’s tennis.  The NEAC will compete as associate members of the NAC in men’s tennis, while the NAC will compete as associate members of the NEAC in women’s tennis.  Members from each conference will be divided into an East and West Division for each sport, with each division holding a championship and the two divisional champions then facing off to determine the conference champion. The conference winner for each sport will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championships. 

A complete breakdown of the NEAC/NAC tennis partnership is as follows:

Men's Tennis: NEAC members Cazenovia, Keuka, Lancaster Bible, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks and Rutgers-Camden will play as associate members of the NAC in a West Division.  The East Division will consist of NAC members Castleton, Colby-Sawyer, Green Mountain, Johnson State, Lyndon State, MCLA and Thomas.

Women's Tennis: NAC members Castleton, Colby-Sawyer, Johnson State, Lyndon State, MCLA and Thomas will play in the NEAC as associate members in the East Division.  The West Division will consist of NEAC members Cazenovia, College of St. Elizabeth, Keuka, Lancaster Bible, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks and Wells.