DENVER - Idaho's Abid Akbar and Utah State's McKenzie Davis have been named the Western Athletic Conference Men's and Women's Tennis Players of the Month, respectively, for the month of September.
Akbar, a senior from Islamabad, Pakistan, advanced to the round of 16 at the prestigious Baylor Invitational with wins over players from Louisiana-Lafayette and Baylor before a tight loss to Hunter Reese of Tennessee, the tournament's No. 2 overall seed. The tournament annually features many of the top collegiate tennis players in the country. In doubles play he teamed up with Marius Cirstea to advance to the quarterfinals of the 32-team draw, narrowly falling 9-8 with a chance to reach the semifinals on the line.
A sophomore from Salt Lake City, Davis had a 7-1 singles record for the month, with her one loss in the finals of the blue flight at the BYU Invitational. Davis recovered from her finals loss and rallied at the Jack Taylor Classic where she won all her matches in straight sets, defeating opponents from Eastern Washington, Seattle U and Boise State. In doubles play Davis teamed with partner Jaci West to go 4-0 in the month, including an 8-3 win to capture the doubles title over host Boise State at the Jack Taylor Classic.
Also nominated for the men: Luis Ramirez, New Mexico State; Kyle Rapp, Seattle U; Sven Poslusny, Utah State.
Also nominated for the women: Almudena Sanz, Idaho; Ginet Pinero, New Mexico State; Anna Lambert, Seattle U.