Four Nighthawks Headline PBC All-Conference Honors, Benoit Named Co-Player Of The Year
DAHLONEGA – The Peach Belt Conference announced the 2024 Men's Tennis All-Conference Teams Thursday afternoon. A number of Nighthawks were honored with all-conference selections this season after the team finished in third place during the regular season.
Senior Joaquin Benoit led the way for UNG as he was named to the PBC All-Conference First Team for Singles. In singles play this year, Benoit holds a 12-2 record this year which includes a 2-1 mark against nationally ranked opponents. On Apr. 15, Benoit took down the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's No. 3 ranked singles player in Alex Benichou Blanchard with an easy 6-2, 6-2 win to help the Nighthawks defeat No. 17 Mississippi College.
Benoit also collected another all-conference honor as he and junior teammate Robin Eldin were named to the PBC All-Conference First Team for Doubles. The dynamic duo is 11-2 this season and 1-1 in ranked play after beating the ITA No. 17 doubles team from Flagler.
While Benoit has racked up the conference accolades in his career, this comes as the first for Eldin who was also named PBC Men's Tennis Player of the Week back in February.
However, Benoit did not stop at doubles when receiving the conference honors. The senior from Mar del Plata, Argentina was named PBC Co-Player of the Year presented by College Ave. Student Loans, joined by Flagler's Baptiste Mercier.
Senior Giulio Sassi also earned his first career PBC postseason awards. The Mendrisio, Switzerland native was named to the PBC All-Conference Second Team for Singles. Sassi went 10-8 in singles this year after primarily playing in the #2 singles spot while rotating up to the #1 singles match three times. He picked up a 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 ranked win over ITA men's singles No. 22 Sebastian Rondon back in March.
Christopher Cahour was also recognized with all-conference acclaim for his efforts in the classroom. He was given The Elite 18 Award presented by Barnes & Noble College. The Elite 18 Award is presented at each of the PBC's 18 championships to the competing student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA.
The quartet of Nighthawks have been dominant all season long in helping the team to a strong regular season. Now, they'll head to Columbus, Ga. to compete for a PBC Championship in the PBC Men's Tennis Tournament. UNG will face sixth-seeded Georgia College in the first round of the event on Friday, Apr. 26 at 3 p.m.
Latest Top Stories Feed
- Vajda Named Finalist For Jack Nicklaus AwardDAHLONEGA – University of North Georgia men's golf senior Jack Vajda has been named a finalist for the 2024 NCAA Division II Jack Nicklaus Award presented by Workday. The Canton, Ga. native is one of just five Div. II players to be named a finalist, joining Drew Coble (Grand Valley State), Adam Duncan (Colorado Christian), Leandro Mihaich (Oklahoma Christian) and Sangha Park (UTPB).
- Three Nighthawks Earn All-Region Acclaim Ahead Of Men's Golf ChampionshipsDAHLONEGA – The No. 1 University of North Georgia men's golf team had three players named to the 2024 PING Southeast All-Region by the Golf Coaches Association of America as announced by the association Wednesday night.
- Nighthawk Tennis Programs Honored By ITA With Five 2024 Southeast Region Award WinnersDAHLONEGA – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association has announced the regional award winners for the 2024 NCAA Division II men's and women's tennis season. The University of North Georgia men's and women's teams each earned all-region acclaim from the ITA.
- Season Comes To A Close For No. 8 Nighthawks In Southeast Super RegionalDAHLONEGA – The No. 8 University of North Georgia softball team had its season ended Wednesday afternoon in the Southeast Super Regionals as No. 22 Lenoir-Rhyne won a pair of games while facing elimination to clinch the program's first ever Southeast Regional championship.
- No. 8 Nighthawks Race Past No. 22 Lenoir-Rhyne To Open Super Regional SeriesDAHLONEGA – The No. 8 University of North Georgia softball team took a 1-0 series lead in the 2024 NCAA Southeast Super Regional after an 11-3, five inning win over No. 22 Lenoir-Rhyne at Haines & Carolyn Hill Stadium at Lynn Cottrell Park Tuesday afternoon.
- No. 10 Nighthawks End Season In Southeast RegionalsAUBURN, Ala. – The No. 10 University of North Georgia men's tennis team saw its 2024 season come to an end at the hands of No. 6 Columbus State in the finals of the Southeast Region #2 Tournament Tuesday afternoon.