Women's Tennis Sweeps Major Patriot League Awards
May 10, 2016 | Women's Tennis
CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - For the first time in three years since joining the Patriot League, the three-time defending conference champion Boston University women's tennis team has swept all four major conference athletic awards, the league office announced Tuesday afternoon.
Senior Johanna Hyoty claimed her third Patriot League Player of the Year award and her second Doubles Team of the Year honor alongside freshman Sabrina Faybyshev, who also became the Terriers' first Conference Rookie of the Year since 2009. After guiding BU to its 16th overall NCAA appearance, 31st-year head coach Lesley Sheehan was named Coach of the Year for the third time.
BU led the other eight conference squads with five total All-Conference accolades. Both members of the Patriot League 25th Anniversary Team, Hyoty and senior Lauren Davis, were placed on the six-member first team. Faybyshev was joined by sophomore Iryna Kostirko and junior Barbara Rodriguez on the second team.
A native of Tampere, Finland, Hyoty had a 9-5 overall record this spring at No. 1 singles, including a 3-0 mark during the Patriot League regular season. The first in the PL history to earn three straight Player of the Year awards and second to receive three total, Hyoty also held a 9-3 record with Faybyshev at No. 1 doubles, which included a 6-0 mark in League action and an upset victory over Dartmouth's No. 7-nationally ranked duo.
Joining the Terriers from Marlboro, N.J., Faybyshev primarily played at No. 3 singles and tallied a 10-8 overall record, which included a 6-0 mark against Patriot League opponents. For her performance during the PL Tournament, she was voted as the John "Pat" Rooney Tournament MVP.
Receiving her seventh overall Coach of the Year Award after capturing her 25th conference title, Sheehan coached the Terriers to a 12-8 overall record and unbeaten mark in PL action, completing the slate with a 4-1 win over Navy for the tournament title. Since joining the conference and defeating nine-time defending champion Army, BU is a perfect 9-0 in tournament play and has only lost two combined points.
A four-time All-Conference First Team honoree with her first honor awarded by the America East in 2013, Davis went 11-6 during the dual season in singles action while collecting six total wins in doubles. A native of MItchellville, Md., she claimed impressive singles wins over Yale, Maryland, Harvard and UConn along the way.
Both Kostirko (Mississauga, Canada) and Rodriguez (Caracas, Venezuela) received All-PL accolades for the second consecutive year. Kostirko went 12-8 in singles action, including 8-8 at line 3, while Rodriguez led BU in singles wins at 13-8 with a 7-1 record at line 5. The duo played doubles together and combined for a 12-8 record, highlighted by wins over Navy, UConn, Army and Loyola Marymount.
The Terriers will next make their 16th overall NCAA appearance at No. 16 Texas Tech on Friday with action slated to begin at 6 p.m. ET.
2016 All-Patriot League and Major Awards in Women's Tennis
Player of the Year - Johanna Hyoty, Boston U.
Doubles Team of the Year - Johanna Hyoty/Sabrina Faybyshev, Boston U.*
Rookie of the Year - Sabrina Faybyshev, Boston U.
Coach of the Year - Lesley Sheehan, Boston U.
First Team All-Patriot League
Carolyn Pitman, Army West Point, Sr.
Lauren Davis, Boston University, Sr.
Johanna Hyoty, Boston University, Sr.*
Maria Cioffi, Bucknell, Sr.
Christina Auyeung, Lehigh, So.
Amanda Keller, Navy, So.
*Unanimous vote
Second Team All-Patriot League
Rugile Valuniate, Army West Point, Fr.
Sabrina Faybyshev, Boston University, Fr.
Iryna Kostirko, Boston University, So.
Barbara Rodriguez, Boston University, Jr.
Lauren Hyland, Colgate, Fr.
Claudia Mackenzie, Navy, So.
