SAN MATEO, Calif. — University of San Francisco men's tennis sophomore Nitzan Ricklis earned the second all-West Coast Conference honor of his career Thursday, getting named to the singles second team in the conference's annual awards.
 
Ricklis played as the Dons' No. 1 singles player all year long, posting a 6-9 record. He won back-to-back WCC No. 1 singles matches on the Dons' road trip to the Pacific Northwest on April 9-10, beating Portland's No. 1, Sema Pankin, and Gonzaga's top dog, Matthew Hollingworth, both in straight sets.
 
Ricklis opened the season with three consecutive wins at No. 1, twice beating Hermont Legaspi of Sacramento State and also Ivan Thamma of UC Davis. He began his 2021 spring season with a 4-2 mark, which also included a victory over Nevada No. 1 Delmas N'Tcha.
 
"Nitzan has improved each year since he has been at USF and I am happy he is able to see his improvement receive recognition," said San Francisco head coach JT Sundling. "He shows up every day ready and willing to give 100%, which sets a great example for the rest of the team. I am looking forward to what his senior year holds in store for him."
 
August Holmgren captured WCC Player of the Year honors after turning in another standout season for San Diego. Guy Den Ouden becomes the sixth Pepperdine student-athlete to capture WCC Freshman of the Year honors and the first since Sebastian Fanselow did so in 2010. Adam Schaechterle guided the No. 28 Waves back to the top of the WCC standings in his third season as head coach in Malibu and was named this season's WCC Coach of the Year.