ROCHESTER, NY - Five members of the RIT men's tennis team earned 2009 All-Empire 8 Conference postseason honors on Wednesday. Senior
Jose Guzman (Guatemala/Collegio Valle Verde) earned first team honors in singles and paired with freshman
Clayton Tontarski (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta) to earn second team honors in doubles. Junior
John Traver (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) was a second team selection in single and partnered with
Adam Wolf (South Euclid, Ohio/Brush) to garner second team accolades in doubles. Senior
Mauricio Pommier (Santa Cruz, Bolivia/German) was RIT's representative as the Empire 8 Sportsperson of the Year.
Guzman, who earned All-Empire 8 first team singles honors in 2006 and second team singles accolades in 2008, finished the season with a 6-6 record at first singles. Guzman and Tontarski were 7-6 at first doubles. The duo won five straight doubles matches in April. Guzman earned All-Empire 8 accolades in doubles for four straight seasons. He was a three-time second team selection.
Traver, an All-Empire 8 second team singles selection in 2007, also garnered honorable mention accolades in singles and doubles in 2008. This season, Traver was named the Empire 8 Player of the Week and RIT Male Athlete of the Week on April 13. Traver was 7-5 at second singles and teamed with Adam Wolf to finish 7-5 at second doubles. The duo won seven straight doubles matches from March 31 to May 2.
One member of each team was named that institution’s representative on the 2009 Men’s Tennis Sportsman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete’s experience in conjunction with an institution’s educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportsmen.
Pommier finished 6-4 during the season, playing primarily at fifth and sixth singles. He enjoyed three different two match winning streaks during the season.
The Tigers finished the season with a 9-4 record and won eight straight contests from March 31 to May 2. RIT finished third in the conference.