WACO, Texas – Newman University tennis teams were recognized Monday afternoon (May 6) landing four individuals onto the 2019 All-Heartland Conference Tennis Teams the league office announced. On the men's side sophomore, Arthur Esteves Justo headlined the selections earning first team honors, while teammates Teodor Antelj and Lori Soome received second team honors. Junior, Valda Litvinova represented the women's side as the lone Jet earning second team honors.
Esteves Justo receives a first-team selection for the first time in his career. Serving as the Jets number-one singles player for the majority of the season the Brazilian native posted a 7-14 overall record. The sophomore recorded an impressive 2-1 Heartland Conference record, including the match clinching point in the Jets win over St. Mary's securing a spot in the Heartland Conference Championship. Esteves Justo finished the conference portion of the season with a clean 3-0 record in doubles action.
Antelj earned second team honors for the first time of his career. Antelj concluded his first season in a Jets uniform with a 9-8 overall record in singles action and a strong 2-1 record in conference play. The Serbia native finished with a strong 3-1 conference record in doubles play.
Soome earned all-conference honors for the first time landing on the All-Heartland Conference second-team. On the season, Soome posted a 8-12 overall record in singles play and a 10-9 doubles mark. Soome was part of a Jets squad which finished runner-up in the Heartland Conference Tournament.
Litvinova receives a second-team selection for the first time in her career. Severing as the number one singles player on the women's team, Litvinova concluded the season with an impressive 14-6 overall record. In doubles play, Litvinova led the charge for the Jets recording a 16-9 record for the year..
Below is the 2018-19 All-Heartland Conference Men's Tennis Team
Player of the Year – Chase Bartlett (St. Edward's)
Outstanding Senior of the Year – Logan Buignet (St. Edward's)
Freshman of the Year – Anish Sriniketh (St. Edward's)
Coach of the Year – Estevam Strecker (St. Edward's)
2019 Men's Tennis All-Heartland Conference
First Team
Chase Bartlett (St. Edward's)
Jeremiah Gonzalez (St. Mary's)
Anish Sriniketh (St. Edward's)
Logan Buignet (St. Edward's)
Bojan Popovich (St. Mary's)
Arthur Esteves Justo (Newman)
Gabriel Zuniga (St. Edward's)
Second Team
Andre Mercado (St. Edward's)
Grant McKenzie (Dallas Baptist)
Lauri Soome (Newman)
Zac Robinson (St. Edward's)
Brian Nguyen (Dallas Baptist)
Teddy Antelj (Newman)
Below is the 2018-19 All-Heartland Conference Women's Tennis Team
Player of the Year – Ally Maciel (St. Mary's)
Outstanding Senior of the Year – Valentina Martinez (St. Edward's)
Freshman of the Year – Ashley Penshorn (St. Mary's)
Coach of the Year – Lisa Dausin (St. Mary's)
2019 Women's Tennis All-Heartland Conference
First Team
Ally Maciel (St. Mary's)
Kate Malazonia (St. Edward's)
Beth Hayward (St. Edward's)
Alex Corder (St. Mary's)
Pao Carpio (St. Edward's)
Laura Galvan (St. Edward's)
Second Team
Taylor Leslie (Dallas Baptist)
Valentina Martinez (St. Edward's)
Claire Nguyen (Dallas Baptist)
Vlada Litvinova (Newman)
Kate Daugherty (Dallas Baptist)
Elisa Guillen (St. Edward's)
Bianca Koen (Arkansas-Fort Smith)
