NEW YORK | The Skyline Conference's eight men's tennis head coaches have voted on the 2023 edition of the all-conference team, and Farmingdale State senior Mark Baker (Baldwin, N.Y.) has been selected as Player of the Year for a third time (previously: 2019, '22) after guiding the second-seeded Rams to a championship victory over top-seeded Manhattanville in the Conference Final and another berth in the NCAA Tournament this spring.
In addition to Baker, FSC junior Alan Sabovic (Bohemia, N.Y.) and freshman Ryan Hendel (North Merrick, N.Y.) also garnered first-team All-Skyline accolades.
Baker finished the season with a school-record 44th career singles victory in the championship, moving him into sole possession of the top singles wins mark all-time at FSC. He went 14-1 overall in singles at No. 1 during the regular season, including 7-0 in Skyline play. He also teamed for a 14-1 overall doubles record at the No. 1 flight, going a perfect 7-0 in conference doubles. He finishes the season as the program's record holder in total singles wins, singles W/L percentage, doubles wins and doubles W/L percentage, and won all of his singles matches in Skyline play during his career on his way to his fourth first-team all-conference designation. Against the Valiants in the championship final last week, he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tourney for the second time in his career (2019), becoming just the fourth student-athlete in conference history to earn the distinction twice.
Sabovic, FSC's No. 2 singles and doubles player, held a 12-1 record in singles play, including a perfect 5-0 mark in Skyline Conference action. He was also 14-2 in doubles competition, with a perfect 6-0 mark in the Skyline with senior teammate Muhammad Sawar (Brentwood, N.Y.).
In his first collegiate season, Hendel played with Baker in top-flight doubles, with the duo compiling a record of 13-1 together. Hendel was the No. 3 singles player for Farmingdale State and went 11-3. He tallied a combined record of 12-1 in the Skyline Conference in both doubles and singles matches this season.
The trio and the rest of head coach Adam Waterhouse's Farmingdale State squad will open play in the 2023 NCAA Division III Men's Tennis Championship on Friday (May 5), when it takes on Baruch College in first-round action at Tufts University in Medford, Mass., at noon.
2023 Skyline Conference Men's Tennis All-Conference Team
First Team
Mark Baker, Farmingdale State (Sr.; Baldwin, N.Y.)
Ryan Hendel, Farmingdale State (Fr.; North Merrick, N.Y.)
James Hourihan, Manhattanville (Jr.; Ridgefield, Conn.)
Michael Natkin, Yeshiva (Fr.; Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Eli Palagatshev, Purchase (Fr.; Yonkers, N.Y.)
Julian Szuper, Purchase (Sr.; New York, N.Y.)
Alan Sabovic, Farmingdale State (Jr.; Bohemia, N.Y.)
Second Team
Gabby Eitkis, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Jr.; Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Ryan Freeley, St. Joseph's-Long Island (Gr.; Stony Brook, N.Y.)
Weston Goodwin, Manhattanville (Jr.; Freeport, Maine)
Clayton Miller, Sarah Lawrence (Fr.; Morrison, Colo.)
Eitan Jeselsohn, Yeshiva (Sr.; Newton, Mass.)
RJ Novak, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (So.; Yorktown, Va.)
Player of the Year: Mark Baker, Farmingdale State
Rookie of the Year: Eli Palagatshev, Purchase
Coach of the Year: Jordan Snider, Purchase (Sixth Season)
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