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UVa Men's Tennis Player Brian Vahaly Repeats as ACC Player of the Year
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April 26, 2001
GREENSBORO N.C. – Fourth-year University of Virginia men’s tennis player Brian Vahaly (Atlanta, Ga./The Lovett School) was selected Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year for 2001 in a vote of conference coaches, while fellow fourth-year Huntley Montgomery (Chapel Hill, N.C./Chapel Hill) was selected to the All-ACC Team. Vahaly, a two-time All-American, won the award for the second consecutive year. He is also a four-time All-ACC Team member. Montgomery was chosen to his second straight All-ACC team and his third in four years.
Vahaly, the nation’s 15th-ranked singles player, ran the table at No. 1 singles in ACC dual matches for the second straight year en route to capturing flight champion honors at No. 1 singles. He finished the 2001 season with a perfect 8-0 record against conference opponents, and also won both of his matches at the ACC Tournament. The two-time All-American from Atlanta, Ga. was undefeated during the 2000 season as well. Vahaly finished 8-0 in the ACC and 35-5 overall in 2000.
Vahaly has lost just three ACC singles matches in four years. He has lost just one match in the last three seasons and has compiled a 30-3 record in conference matches over his four-year career. He is 16-0 in the last two seasons and 24-1 in the last three years. Vahaly’s current 2001 record is 35-5, which ties him for his own school record for most singles wins in a season. If Vahaly qualifies for the NCAA Tournament, he will have the opportunity to surpass his own 35-win plateau.
Montgomery, who is ranked 83rd in the country, had an extremely impressive ACC season as well. In singles, the fourth-year went 7-1 and won the flight championship at No. 2 singles. He also won two matches at the ACC Tournament and is currently on pace to set a new personal record for singles matches won in a season. Montgomery is 27-8 overall and needs just one more win to eclipse his current record of 27 wins, which he set during the 1998 season when he went 27-14.
In addition to their success in singles, Montgomery and Vahaly formed a potent doubles tandem during the ACC season. The duo won seven of eight matches, losing only to Duke’s Philip King and Ramsey Smith, 9-8, in a tiebreaker. Vahaly and Montgomery currently hold a 31-6 overall record and make up the top-ranked doubles team in the country.