HADLEY, Mass. – The New England Small College Athletic Conference announced its award recipients for the 2021 men's tennis season.
In a vote by NESCAC coaches, seniors Boris Sorkin of Tufts and
Arturo Kam of Williams were named Co-Players of the Year.
Chase Cohen of Williams was selected as the Rookie of the Year. Williams head coach
Dan Greenberg was voted NESCAC Coach of the Year by his peers.
Kam is 6-1 at No. 1 singles as the Ephs head into NCAA Tournament play. He also teamed with
Calvin Chung to win three matches as the No. 1 doubles team for the Ephs. Kam, who was also selected to the All-NESCAC First Team in singles and doubles, is the sixth Eph to collect NESCAC Player of the Year honors (Josh Lefkowitz – 2002;
Dan Greenberg – 2008;
Felix Sun – 2012; Trey Meyer – 2013; Brian Grodecki – 2018).
Cohen went 6-1 as the No. 4 singles player for Williams and posted a 6-1 record at No. 2 doubles with
Austin Barr. Cohen helped the Ephs capture their 16th NESCAC title with a thrilling 5-4 victory over Tufts in the NESCAC Championship Match. Cohen is the third Williams player to be named NESCAC Rookie of the Year (
Dan Greenberg – 2005;
Felix Sun – 2010).
Greenberg guided Williams to an unbeaten 4-0 record in the NESCAC West division and the program's first NESCAC title since 2013 and 16th overall. The Ephs earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by winning the NESCAC title and are making their 23rd appearance in the postseason event. He garners the NESCAC Coach of the Year award for the second time in his career (2013) since arriving at Williams in 2009.
2021 EPH NESCAC honorees:
First Team Singles
Austin Barr
Arturo Kam
First Team Doubles
Calvin Chung
Arturo Kam
Second Team Singles
Calvin Chung
Second Team Doubles
Austin Barr
Chase Cohen
Greenberg stated, "I have so much respect for the coaches in this conference, so to be voted for this award is a real honor. And to me it is really a reflection of the great student-athletes we have and all of the support from our department in this crazy year to enable us to do what we love."
Dan Greenberg commented on his honored players:
Arturo Kam (Co-POTY and 1st Team Singles): "Arturo has always been a talented player for us, but this past year his dedication and focus have taken him to the top of D3 tennis (and onto D1 tennis next year at Duke). It's been awesome to watch his growth in training and in matches. He gets tougher by the day, and his dominance at #1 singles is impressive."
Austin Barr (1st Team Singles): "AB has eaten, slept, and breathed tennis since he was born, but after recovering from grueling hip surgery last year, he's learned how to train much smarter and compete more efficiently, and his comeback has been inspiring. He puts more into every ball than anyone I've seen and earned every ounce of success he's had at Williams."
Calvin Chung (2nd Team Singles): "Calvin has always strived to be the best tennis player he can be and is a real perfectionist when it comes to practice. As frustrating as tennis can be, he doesn't stop working on something until he gets it right, and anyone who watches him can appreciate how well he plays this sport and how well he competes, especially under pressure."
Kam/Chung (1st Team Doubles): "Arturo and Calvin have the ability to beat anyone they face at #1 doubles and have beaten some very talented teams this spring. I'm excited to see them in NCAA play these next few weeks."
Barr/Cohen (2nd Team Doubles): "AB and Chase have been a rock for us at #2 doubles. Our team has complete faith in them to get the job done, and it's great having them as a foundation between #1 and #3 doubles. They're calm determination to take care of business has allowed them, and the rest of our teams, to do that almost every match."
