Asi Phillips Earns Second Consecutive Northeast Conference Women's Tennis Coach of the Year Award

5/2/07 -- For the second consecutive season, Long Island University head women's tennis coach Asi Phillips has been named the Northeast Conference Women's Tennis Coach of the Year, as a result of a league-wide poll, as announced by the league on Tuesday.

Senior Merve Koksal (Ankara, Turkey) and sophomore Amy Hosotsuji (Toronto, Ontario) were each named to the All-NEC first team at No. 3 and No. 6 singles, respectively. Hosotsuji and doubles teammate Ashley Harvey (Randallstown, Md.) earned top honors at No. 3 doubles.

Three more Blackbirds were named to the league's second team in singles, while Koksal and sophomore Liliana Cortes (Cochabamba, Bolivia) earned second team accolades at the top doubles position.

In his second year as head man, Phillips had the Blackbirds on the cusp of winning their first-ever NEC women’s championship before the Blackbirds succumbed to a late Quinnipiac rally in a memorable 4-3 setback to the four-time defending league champions. Phillips led Long Island to a 6-1 NEC and 10-12 overall after playing a tough non-league schedule.

Koksal now holds the rare distinction of being tabbed All-NEC in each of her four seasons after being selected to the first team at No. 3 singles. Koksal, a second teamer at No. 1 singles in each of her first two years and a first team pick at the No. 2 flight as a junior, joins Quinnipiac’s Stephanie Petrycki, Katherine Ehle and Liz Axler as the only four-time honorees in NEC history. The former NEC Rookie of the Year finished with a 68-26 career singles record and was 24-3 versus conference rivals.

Hosotsuji was a steady contributor for LIU at No. 6 singles. She ended her season on a five-match winning streak, including two straight set NEC Tournament victories. Hosotsuji compiled a perfect 6-0 record in league matches and was 8-11 overall.

Long Island freshman H’Ann Johnson (St. John’s, Antigua) won just six matches on the season at No. 1 singles, but excelled in the NEC Tournament with a pair of victories, including a come-from-behind three-set win in the championship match against Quinnipiac. She posted a 4-1 record against league rivals.

Johnson’s teammate, sophomore Ashley Harvey (Randallstown, Md.), is this year’s No. 2 flight second-team recipient. Harvey, who was a first team All-NEC performer and the conference's Rookie of the Year as a freshman at #4 singles, raised her two-year victory total to 38 after posting a 15-9 record on the year.

Senior Xenia Roman Korobochkina (Vera Cruz, Mexico) rounds out the Blackbirds' singles honorees and was the coaches pick at No. 5 singles. A three-time All-NEC second team selection, she won seven matches on the year and went 4-1 against league competition.

The Blackbirds return four letterwinners for the 2007-08 season, all of whom were all-league honorees this past year.

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