ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – After leading the UCF women’s tennis team to one of the best seasons in program history, head coach Bryan Koniecko was honored by his alma mater for his playing days. Koniecko was inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame as a member of the 2018 class.
He will be part of a 10-member class that was inducted on Friday, Sept. 7.
Koniecko was one of OSU’s best tennis players in program history. A five-time All-American, Koniecko finished his career second in school history with 254 combined victories. The Long Island, N.Y., native led his team to four Big Ten regular season and tournament titles. He earned consecutive Big Ten Athlete of the Year accolades in 2008 and 2009, and after playing No. 1 singles as a freshman, he was named the league’s freshman of the year in 2006. Koniecko was so dominant that he never lost a match at home in his four years.
As a captain in his senior year, Koniecko won the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Singles title and was ranked No. 1 in the country individually. Ohio State also was ranked No. 1 in the country during his final campaign and he helped lead the team to the program’s first appearance in the national championship match.
After graduating with a bachelor of arts degree in 2009, Koniecko continued to play at the professional level where he reached an ATP career high ranking of 651 and was ranked in the Top 45 of American tennis players. He earned his first professional title in 2007, winning the ITF professional futures event in Ecuador. He also had the opportunity to compete in 2007 and 2008 U.S. Open qualifying.
Following a head coaching stop at Brown, Koniecko has done nothing short of establishing UCF as a women’s tennis power. He garnered The American Coach of the Year Award, while freshman Rebeka Stolmar took home Freshman of the Year and All-Conference honors. Maria Martinez joined Stolmar on the All-Conference squad.
Koniecko guided the Black and Gold up to a record ranking of No. 19 in the ORACLE/ITA poll. The Knights defeated six out of seven ranked opponents, including a 4-3 victory against No. 15 South Carolina in the season opener and a 5-2 decision at No. 16 Baylor.
Doubles team Maria Martinez and Ksenia Kuznetsova became the first tandem in program history to earn at place in the NCAA Women's Tennis Doubles Championship. Together, the partnership flourished with a 17-4 record on the year, including 16 wins at No. 1.
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