Contact: Drew Sauer, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324
2021 All-CCIW Women's Tennis Teams
Apr. 27, 2021 – Following its perfect 8-0 finish in College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) play this season, the North Central College women's tennis team landed three on the All-Conference teams while sweeping Coach of the Year, Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year awards.
After leading the Cardinals to its first unbeaten CCIW regular season in program history and setting a program record for single-season conference wins, head coach
Ryan Jump was named CCIW Coach of the Year, becoming the first women's tennis coach in school history to earn the award. In just his fourth year as head coach, Jump is already the second-winningest coach in program history, turning around a program that finished second to last in the conference before Jump's hiring prior to the 2018 season.
Also making program history is
Kaeli Smashey, earning the first CCIW Player of the Year award after finishing the CCIW regular season 8-0 at the No. 1 singles position. Smashey was also named CCIW Newcomer of the Year, transferring from Broward College prior to this season, the second such award for the program as
Hannah Hougland earned the distinction in 2018. Smashey was also named to the All-CCIW First Team and is the first player in CCIW history to win both Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year.
Hougland was named All-CCIW for the third-straight season, adding a second-straight First Team selection to her Second Team and Newcomer of the Year awards in 2018. Hougland also finished the CCIW slate a perfect 8-0 in singles play at the No. 2 position, while teaming up with
Alaina Kanthaphixay to post a 7-1 record at No. 1 doubles this season.
Kanthaphixay was named to the All-CCIW Second Team for the third-consecutive season. In addition to teaming up with Hougland at No. 1 doubles, Kanthaphixay went 6-0 at the No. 3 singles position over the conference schedule.
The three All-CCIW selections match a program-high for a single-season, as Jump's 2018 squad also landed three on the all-conference teams.
North Central opens play at the 2021 CCIW Automatic Qualifier Tournament as the No. 1 seed and will host eighth-seeded Illinois Wesleyan University on Tuesday, Apr. 27 at 2 p.m. at Nike Park.
