College of William and Mary announces Hedda Gurholt and Jessica Giuggioli Take Home Top CAA Honors
RICHMOND, Va. – William & Mary sophomore Hedda Gurholt was named the Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year and head coach Jessica Giuggioli took home the league's coach of the year honor to highlight the All-CAA awards, the conference announced on Friday.
Along with the major award winners, the Tribe topped the CAA in total all-league honorees (6), first team selections (3), singles players honored (4) and doubles teams recognized (2).
Senior Elisa Van Meeteren joined Gurholt on the All-CAA First Team in singles, while graduate student Sofiya Kuzina and sophomore Ine Stange garnered a spot on the top doubles team. Kuzina was named to the second team in singles, while sophomore Emma Fernald earned third team honors. Fernald and Van Meeteren garnered third team distinction in doubles.
Gurholt became the 17th W&M women's tennis player on the 24th occasion to be named the league's player of the year and the eighth in the last nine years. She was the league's rookie of the year last season and also moved up to the first team in singles after being a second team choice a season ago.
During her sophomore season, Gurholt was dominant at the top singles position, going 15-3 and winning each of her final nine matches. She posted an overall singles ledger of 20-7 and her career winning % of 70.5 ranks 12th in program history. Gurholt was named the Most Outstanding Player of the CAA Championship after leading the Tribe to its 28th conference title. She was 7-0 against league opponent this season.
Giuggioli repeated as the CAA Coach of the Year after leading the Tribe its second-straight league championship on April 23. The Tribe is 15-5 on the year with wins in nine of its last 10 matches entering the NCAA Regional on Friday. Over her two seasons in Williamsburg, W&M is an impressive 28-14 (.667). It marks sixth time a Tribe head coach has won the league's coach of the year in back-to-back seasons and the 16th time overall.
Van Meeteren earned her first All-CAA singles honor as a member of the first team. The Tribe senior posted a 16-10 record and was 5-0 against CAA opponents during the regular season. She played at the top of the Tribe lineup, winning six matches at the No. 2 spot, including four in CAA play.
Kuzina and Stange were named to the All-CAA First Team in doubles. It was the first all-league honor for Stange, while Kuzina earned First Team All-NEC honors in doubles during her time in LIU. The tandem led the Tribe with a 10-4 record, including four wins at the No. 1 position. They were ranked throughout the spring and as high as No. 35 nationally on Feb. 21. Stange and Kuzina were named the CAA Doubles Team of the Week on three occasions.
Kuzina garnered second team honors in singles behind a 17-11 record . She played at both the No. 2 and No. 3 positions, racking up 11 dual-match victories. Kuzina was 7-1 against CAA opponents, including a perfect 3-0 mark in helping the Tribe to the league title. She clinched W&M's 4-3 win in the semifinals over Elon with a straight-sets win at No. 3. Kuzina was a two-time all-league performer in singles at LIU.
Fernald earned her first All-CAA honor with a spot on the third team in both singles and doubles. She enters the NCAA Regional on a seven-match win streak following a pair of wins at the CAA Championship. Fernald owns an 18-8 singles record on the year and is an impressive 37-18 (.673) over her two seasons. Playing exclusively at the No. 4 spot, she went 11-5 in dual-match action, including a perfect 7-0 against CAA opponents.
Fernald and Van Meeteren earned a spot on the All-CAA Third Team in doubles. The duo owns nine wins on the year, including seven at the top two positions. They knocked off the No. 54-ranked team in the country in the Tribe's dual-match with Maryland in February. Fernald and Van Meeteren went 2-0 at the CAA Championship, including clinching the doubles point against UNCW in the title match. It marked the second-straight year that Van Meeteren earned third team honors in doubles.
The Tribe takes on No. 6 Duke in the First Round of the NCAA Championship today at 5 p.m. W&M earned its 25th bid to the NCAA Championship and takes on the host Blue Devils at the Amber Tennis Center in Durham, N.C. Live stats and video are available for the match on the Tribe schedule page and on the regional championship page.
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