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SOMERSET, N.J. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson women's tennis program cleaned up the Northeast Conference postseason accolades, which the league announced on Thursday. Headlining for the Knights is freshman Ksenia Tihomirova, who was voted NEC Rookie of the Year, and Head Coach Jonathan Buchman, who was voted NEC Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season.

Three student-athletes were named First Team All-NEC in singles: sophomore Gisela Castany (Barcelona, Spain/) at No. 4, junior Mariya Krachok (Kiev, Ukraine/Secondary School #50) at No. 5 and senior Manuela Leme (Varginha, Brazil/E.E. Antania Alves Cruz) at No. 6. Tihomirova (No. 1), freshman Shreya Pasricha (New Delhi, India/Amity International School) (No. 2) and sophomore Nicole Chis (Highland Park, N.J./Highland Park) (No. 3) were all named Second Team All-NEC in singles.In doubles, Castany and Tihomirova were selected to the First Team at No. 1, while Chis and Krachok joined the duo on the First Team at No. 2.

Tihomirova joins Chis (2013) and all-time FDU great Julija Korsunova (2007) as Knights who have earned the NEC Rookie of the Year award. Stepping directly into the No. 1 singles spot, Tihomirova found immediate success, winning the Bill & Sandra Moore Classic at Navy last September. She was tabbed the NEC Player and Rookie of the Month in September, and went on to win three NEC Rookie of the Week awards and an NEC Player of the Week honor in the spring. After winning her first NEC championship earlier this month, the Riga, Latvia native heads into NCAA Tournament play with a 17-8 overall mark and 9-4 record at No. 1 singles. She also finished 4-1 versus NEC competitors.
 
Buchman has now been honored by his peers as the NEC's top coach in each of his two years since taking over the FDU program. Under his direction, the Knights became the fourth team in NEC history to three-peat as league champion with a 4-0 win over LIU Brooklyn in the title match on April 19. The Knights return to the NCAA Tournament next month and enter the postseason with a 13-4 dual meet record. FDU won all seven of its NEC matches in 2013-14, and did not drop a singles or a doubles match in rolling to three consecutive 4-0 victories in the NEC Tournament. All six FDU singles players earned All-NEC recognition along with a pair of doubles teams.

Castany made herself right at home in her first year at FDU. She has tallied an NEC-best 25 victories heading into NCAA play and her 10-1 mark in No. 4 flight competition marks the most wins in the flight in the conference.  The 25 wins are also the most by an NEC player since the Conference began tracking statistics in 2004-05. Castany, who has won seven in a row, was triumphant in all six of her league matches.
Krachok was another FDU player who made a stellar debut in 2013-14. She came up clutch down the stretch for the Knights, winning seven straight and 13 of her last 14 matches, culminating in a trio of straight set victories at the NEC Tournament. She is 20-8 on the year and went 6-0 versus the NEC. Krachok has also won a conference-high 13 matches at the No. 5 flight against just two defeats.
 
Leme, who is the team's lone senior, provided a veteran presence on a FDU team that featured four newcomers in the starting lineup. She earned the second All-NEC first team honor of her career after posting a 5-0 mark against league rivals. Over her four years, Leme has posted a 19-4 NEC record and won 58 matches in total.
Castany and Tihomirova seemed to get better as the year progressed for FDU, concluding the NEC Tournament on a seven-match win streak. Overall, the team has posted a 12-5 record, highlighted by an 11-4 mark at the No. 1 spot. The duo also won five-of-six NEC matches, two of which came in the NEC semifinals and championship match.
 
Krachok and Chis are riding a five-match win streak, which included three NEC Tournament victories. The tandem is 7-3 on the year and went a perfect 6-0 in conference play. Chis also earned first team doubles recognition a year ago along with Anna Rapoport (Moscow, Russia/#1239 ).

Pasricha was yet another FDU newcomer who excelled at a high level in 2013-14. The NEC Rookie of the Month last October, Pasricha enters her first NCAA Championship with an 18-8 overall record. She posted a straight set No. 2 flight victory in the NEC title match for the Knights.
 
Chis made it back-to-back second team All-NEC honors as one of the "veterans" on a young and talented FDU team. Coming off an NEC Rookie of the Year campaign, Chis lifted her play and ended the NEC Tournament with a 21-7 overall mark. She has won eight straight matches, while posting a 6-1 record at No. 3 singles and 5-0 ledger in NEC competition. 
 
2014 NEC Women's Tennis Award Winners                   
                   
NEC Player of the Year
Sanne Louwers               LIU    Jr  Nuenen, Netherlands/Mgr. Cuytenlaan

NEC Rookie of the Year
Ksenija Tihomirova (Riga, Latvia/Riga Secondary School No. 40)          FDU    Fr    Riga, Latvia

NEC Coach of the Year
Jonathan Buchman            FDU

2014 NEC Women's Tennis First Team All-Conference                   
 
Singles
 
Flt Name                    School Yr  Hometown/High School    
#1    Sanne Louwers         LIU    Jr  Nuenen, Netherlands/Mgr. Cuytenlaan
#2    Ryan Brown            BRY    Fr  Austin, TX/Lake Travis
#3    Marine Dans           LIU    Fr  Waterloo, Belgium/Institu de Mot Couvreur
#4    Gisela Castany (Barcelona, Spain/)        FDU    So  Barcelona, Spain
#5    Mariya Krachok (Kiev, Ukraine/Secondary School #50)        FDU    Jr  Kiev, Ukraine
#6    Manuela Leme (Varginha, Brazil/E.E. Antania Alves Cruz)          FDU    Sr  Varginha, Brazil/E.E. Antania Alves Cruz

Doubles
#1    Gisela Castany (Barcelona, Spain/)        FDU    So  Barcelona, Spain
      Ksenija Tihomirova (Riga, Latvia/Riga Secondary School No. 40)    FDU    Fr  Riga, Latvia
#2    Nicole Chis (Highland Park, N.J./Highland Park)           FDU    So  Highland Park, NJ/Highland Park
      Mariya Krachok (Kiev, Ukraine/Secondary School #50)        FDU    Jr  Kiev, Ukraine
#3    Marine Dans           LIU    Fr  Waterloo, Belgium/Institu de Mot Couvreur
      Nancy Zonneveld       LIU    Jr  Frankfurt, Germany/European School Frankfurt

2014 NEC Women's Tennis Second Team All-Conference        
 
Singles

Flt Name                    School Yr  Hometown/High School   
#1    Ksenija Tihomirova (Riga, Latvia/Riga Secondary School No. 40)    FDU    Fr  Riga, Latvia
#2    Shreya Pasricha (New Delhi, India/Amity International School)       FDU    Fr  India
#3    Nicole Chis (Highland Park, N.J./Highland Park)           FDU    So  Highland Park, NJ/Highland Park
#4    Isabella Wagener      LIU    Fr  Luxembourg/Lycee Classique Diekirch
#5    Nicole Rydzewski      SHU    Jr  Maspeth, NY/St. Francis Prep
#6    Brittani Jentz        SFU    Fr  Plano, TX/Ursuline Academy of Dallas
 
Doubles
#1    Ryan Brown            BRY    Fr  Austin, TX/Lake Travis
      Rosie Bird            BRY    Jr  Hamilton, New Zealand/Hillcrest
#2    Danielle Gryckiewicz  SFU    So  Calgary, Alberta/Calgary Academy
      Alex Sachs            SFU    Jr  Parkland, FL/Stoneman Douglas
#3    Lucy Jasso            SFU    Jr  San Luis Potosi, Mexico/Instituto Potosino
      Brittani Jentz        SFU    Fr  Plano, TX/Ursuline Academy of Dallas