Two Former Cavalier Men's Tennis Players Named to ACC 50th Anniversary Team

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Sept. 4, 2002

CHARLOTTESVILLE – The Atlantic Coast Conference 50th AnniversaryMen’s Tennis Team was announced today by Commissioner John Swofford. The51-member team was voted on by the nine league institutions as decided by the league’s 50th Anniversary Committee. Two former Cavaliers, Huntley Montgomery (1998-2001) and Brian Vahaly (1998-2001) were both selected to the team.

The two competed during the same period and were a force for the Cavaliers at the top of the lineup in the late 90s and early 2000s. Together, they helped Virginia reach the NCAA regionals from 1998-2001 and formed one of the top doubles teams in league history.

As a doubles team, Montgomery and Vahaly won the conference doubles championship as freshmen by going undefeated in the league. As seniors, the duo were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation and reached the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament.

Individually, Montgomery, a native of Chapel Hill, N.C., was a three-time all-ACC selection. He reached as high as No. 27 in the national singles rankings and won the ACC No. 2 singles flight as a senior. For the 2001 season, Montgomery compiled a 27-8 singles record, and a 7-1 mark in the conference.

Vahaly completed his outstanding collegiate career at Virginia by earning All-America honors for the third time, advancing to the finals of the NCAA Singles Championship and compiling an overall record of 40-6 during the 2000-01 season. His 40 singles victories are a UVa single-season record and he advanced further in the NCAA Singles Championship than any player in UVa history. Vahaly, who was unseeded entering the 2001 NCAA singles competition, lost to third-seeded Matias Boeker of Georgia 6-2, 6-4 in the finals. He finished the season ranked fifth in the nation in singles in the final WingspanBank.com Men’s Collegiate Tennis Rankings.

Vahaly was the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year and the ACC flight champion at #1 singles his last two years at Virginia, and he earned All-ACC honors four times. He lost just three ACC singles matches during his four years as a member of the UVa program and only one his final three seasons. He earned ACC Rookie of the Year honors in 1998.

The native of Atlanta, Ga, was also named the University of Virginia’s Top Male Athlete as a senior in the spring of 2001.