Isabella Carofano was also named Honorable Mention All-GLIAC
GLIAC – The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) has announced its 2021 All-GLIAC Women’s Tennis Team following the final day of the Conference Tournament held at the Midland Tennis Center. The Panthers had a pair of student-athletes on this year’s list including sophomore Willemien Coetzee as a Second Team All-GLIAC performer and freshman Isabella Carofano as a Honorable Mention All-GLIAC selection.
Coetzee repeats as a second team pick after earning the same distinction as a freshman in 2019. The league did not have an all-conference team in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Coetzee picked up three singles wins during GLIAC matches this spring and played No. 1 singles in every match going 6-11 overall. Willemien won during singles against Saginaw Valley State, Ashland and Wayne State.
Carofano enjoyed a solid rookie campaign for the Panthers going 3-1 during GLIAC singles and played No. 2 singles going 5-8 overall. She ended the season on a hot streak winning five of the final seven singles matches. Her singles wins came against Ashland, Michigan Tech and Lake Superior State.
“For all of our players to stay focused and disciplined through the constantly changing COVID situations speaks to the level of maturity of our teams. The players selected to the all-conference teams played a large role in maintaining that culture. I can’t say enough in support of the attitude Miena kept throughout the year. Due to situations out of her control, we played the majority of the season short-handed. This is mentally and emotionally draining for everyone but especially your top player who is remaining competitive at her flight. Miena’s leadership will be equally important for next year’s team with an influx of many new players. It took Isa about a month into season to truly find her stride but once she did, she carried that momentum into some great wins. Unfortunately, her season was stopped short, but we plan on her picking up right where she left off come fall. These two were recognized for their level of tennis this season, but not to go unnoticed was the multiple examples of opposing coach and player respect that was given to our players for their sportsmanship and character. It is something myself and coach Flowers hold above all else and in a year where so much adversity was in their way,” said head coach Patrick Grashorn.
