ROSEMONT, Ill. – Three members of the Illinois men's tennis team were selected to the 2019 All-Big Ten teams, as announced by the league office on Thursday morning. The trio of Illini – juniors Aleks Kovacevic and Zeke Clark, along with sophomore Alex Brown – earned first team honors in a vote by conference coaches. Additionally, junior Vuk Budic was chosen as one of the 12 Sportsmanship Award honorees.
"Great recognition from the conference, these three guys have led our team all year," said head coach Brad Dancer. I am proud to coach them and know they want more."
This marked the 13th time in program history that the Orange and Blue had at least three student-athletes selected to all-conference teams. For the second straight time in his career, Brown received also received First Team All-Big Ten recognition last season as a freshman. With the addition of Kovacevic and Clark, the Fighting Illini now has 82 tennis players with First Team All-Big Ten honors.
Kovacevic garners his first All-Big Ten honor. The New York native has put together an impressive season with a 27-5 overall singles record, including 16-2 in dual-match play. The No. 9 ranked singles player is 7-2 in Big Ten play and also has a 14-2 record in the No. 1 position this season. The junior also compiled a doubles record of 12-7 in dual-match play, with a perfect 7-0 mark in conference play. With partner Alex Brown, the duo is 6-1 overall with all six wins from Big Ten play. Kovacevic has represented the Orange and Blue in conference weekly awards, winning two Big Ten Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week awards this season. He has also clinched four Illini matches and seven doubles points this season.
Clark earned his first All-Big Ten accolade. The Tulsa, Okla. native compiled a regular-season dual-match record of 11-7, while earning an 8-1 record in Big Ten play. The junior has been riding a four-game winning streak, while also clinching four victories for the Illini this season including three conference wins against Iowa, Penn State, and Wisconsin.
Brown earned his second consecutive First Team All-Big Ten award after earning the same honor last season. The Urbandale, Iowa native enters the Big Ten Tournament with a 10-9 dual match singles record and 7-1 record in conference play. Since Feb. 8, Brown has remained at No. 2 in the singles lineup with a 10-7 record. In doubles play, the sophomore is 10-7 in dual match play, while maintain an undefeated 7-0 Big Ten record. With partner Aleks Kovacevic, the duo is 6-1 overall with all six wins from Big Ten play. He has also clinched two victories for the Illini and four doubles points this season.
A Chicago native, Budic was selected as Illinois' 2019 Sportsmanship Award honoree. The students chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In addition, the students must be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Illinois will begin postseason play tomorrow at 1 p.m. CT, when the second-seeded Illini take on either No. 10 seed Purdue or No. 7 seed Northwestern in the quarterfinal round of the Big Ten Tournament in Ann Arbor, Mich. (hosted by Michigan).
2019 All-Big Ten Conference Honors
FIRST TEAM*
Alex Brown, Illinois
Zeke Clark, Illinois
ALEKS KOVACEVIC, Illinois
Antonio Cembellin, Indiana
Andrew Fenty, Michigan
Josip Krstanovic, Minnesota
Dominik Stary, Northwestern
JOHN McNALLY, Ohio State
Kyle Seelig, Ohio State
JJ WOLF, Ohio State
CONSTANT DE LA BASSETIERE, Penn State
Christian Lakoseljac, Penn State
SECOND TEAM
Kareem Allaf, Iowa
Stefan Milicevic, Minnesota
Toby Boyer, Nebraska
Alex Kobelt, Ohio State
Athell Bennett, Purdue
Osgar O'Hoisin, Wisconsin
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
JJ WOLF, Ohio State
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Andrew Fenty, Michigan
COACH OF THE YEAR
Ty Tucker, Ohio State
SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD HONOREES
Vuk Budic, Illinois
Vikash Singh, Indiana
Jonas Larsen, Iowa
Gabe Tishman, Michigan
Ivan Rakic, Michigan State
Josip Krstanovic, Minnesota
Jon Meyer, Nebraska
Chris Ephron, Northwestern
Jacob Wareti, Ohio State
Christian Lakoseljac, Penn State
Dominik Sochurek, Purdue
Jesper Freimuth, Wisconsin
UNANIMOUS SELECTION IN ALL CAPS
*Additional honorees due to ties
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