WATERVILLE, Maine – Thomas College claimed all four major awards when the North Atlantic Conference’s 2023 men’s tennis All-Conference teams were unveiled on Wednesday.

The Terriers’ Jose Afonso earned Player of the Year honors while Nicolas Arenas was selected as the Rookie of the Year. Thomas Head Coach Rob Disch received the Coach of the Year award, while Kegan Rodrigue was tabbed as the NAC’s Senior Scholar Athlete in men’s tennis.

Arenas and Afonso were also named to the All-NAC Singles team, along with teammates Liam Gould and Gabriel McPhail. Northern Vermont-Lyndon’s Jeffrey Blais and David Gratton rounded out the All-NAC Singles team.

The doubles pairings of Afonsto/Arenas (Thomas), Gould/McPhail (Thomas), Garrick Webster/Quin Peer (NVU-Lyndon), and Dominick DeBonis/Benjamin Andersen (SUNY Delhi) comprised the All-NAC Doubles team.

Afonso repeats as the NAC Men’s Tennis Player of the Year after sharing the award with SUNY Delhi’s Jarod Rackliffe in 2022. Afonso captured NAC Men’s Tennis Player of the Week honors twice during the 2023 season, finishing with a 6-0 record in NAC matches at no. 2 singles and a 6-0 ledger at no. 1 doubles with teammate Nicolas Arenas.

Arenas was a three-time NAC Rookie of the Week selection during the 2023 campaign. He posted a 6-0 record in NAC matches while playing no. 1 singles, in addition to his 6-0 mark at no. 1 doubles with Afonso.

Rodrigue currently has a 3.84 GPA while double-majoring in computer science and cyber security, with a minor in political science. He is a member of Thomas’ E-sports team playing Overwatch, and is also a member of the Thomas club men’s ice hockey team. He posted a 9-8 record in singles play during the 2023 season, with a 10-8 record at doubles.

Disch guided the Terriers to an 11-7 overall mark in 2023, including an unblemished 6-0 record against NAC foes. This will mark the third time Disch has earned NAC Men’s Tennis Coach of the Year honors, after previously receiving the accolade in 2022, when he shared it with SUNY Delhi’s Mark Birman, and in 2019. Over six seasons, including the COVID-impacted 2020 and 2021 campaigns, Disch has a 45-26 overall record at the helm of Thomas men’s tennis.

In addition to the top conference awards, 10 student-athletes were named to the All-Conference Singles and Doubles teams, and four were named to the NAC Men's Tennis Sportsmanship Team. The Sportsmanship Team is reserved for those who distinguish themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior. The honorees have positively affected the sport’s culture and game environment by clearly demonstrating sportsmanship and integrity beyond playing rules and etiquette.

The complete list of North Atlantic Conference men’s tennis award recipients, All-Conference, and Sportsmanship Team selections is below:

Player of the Year – Jose Afonso, Thomas
Rookie of the Year – Nicolas Arenas, Thomas
Senior Scholar Athlete – Kegan Rodrigue, Thomas
Coach of the Year – Rob Disch, Thomas

All-North Atlantic Conference
Singles
Jose Afonso, Thomas
Nicolas Arenas, Thomas
Jeff Blais, Northern Vermont-Lyndon
Liam Gould, Thomas
David Gratton, Northern Vermont-Lyndon
Gabe McPhail, Thomas

Doubles
Jose Afonso/Nicolas Arenas, Thomas
Liam Gould/Gabe McPhail, Thomas
Quinn Peer/Garrick Webster, Northern Vermont-Lyndon
Dominick DeBonis/Benjamin Andersen, SUNY Delhi

Sportsmanship Team
SUNY Delhi – Moise Saintil
Northern Vermont-Johnson – Anthony Barbieri
Northern Vermont-Lyndon – Jeff Blais
Thomas College – Caleb Daigneault