COLONIA, NJ – In a unanimous vote, St. Thomas Aquinas women's tennis freshman Anaya Brons (Utrecht, Netherlands) was selected the 2024 ECC Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year, as the ECC Women's Tennis All-Conference selections were announced on Thursday afternoon ahead of this weekend's ECC Championship. Additionally, District of Columbia's Dickie Mahaffey was tabbed the 2024 ECC Coach of the Year by his peers.
Brons dominated in her first collegiate season, turning in a blistering 11-1 overall singles record, including a 7-0 mark at No. 1 with a 5-0 record against ECC competition, taking down Molloy senior Elena Baughman Saunders, D'Youville freshman Mina Randjelovic, Daemen graduate student Frida Rubio, District of Columbia freshman Desire Parn, and Queens graduate student Eva Rivoal. The STAC freshman sensation went 4-1 at the ITA Division II Women's East Regional Singles Championship, reaching the semifinals. The two-time ECC Player of the Week and three-time ECC Rookie of the Week also finished 5-3 overall at doubles and 3-2 in conference play, with one win at No. 1 and a pair of wins at No. 2.
Mahaffey was awarded ECC Coach of the Year honors after leading the Firebirds to a 6-2 overall record and 4-1 mark in ECC play with wins over Daemen, 6-1, D'Youville, 7-0, Molloy, 6-1, and Queens, 4-3. UDC's performance in the conference was good for a share of the ECC regular season title, marking the program's second overall and first since 2021.
Brons and the Spartans and Mahaffey and the Firebirds face off in the first semifinal of the ECC Women's Tennis Championship on Friday morning, October 25. Queens and Daemen follow, with the winners of each advancing to Saturday evening's final. All three matches will be played at the Queens College Tennis Bubble in Flushing, NY.
2024 ECC Women's Tennis All-Conference
First Team
Anaya Brons, St. Thomas Aquinas
Courtney Fyvie, St. Thomas Aquinas
Caroline Hany-Fawzy, Queens
Frida Rubio, Daemen
Elise Semmartin, St. Thomas Aquinas
Polina Zelentsova, Dist. Columbia
Second Team*
Celia Bastin, Dist. Columbia
Saga Berggren, Queen
Kyra Bergmann, Queens
Maja Makal, Queens
Ombeline Robilliart, St. Thomas Aquinas
Regina Ruiz, Queens
Elita Silins, St. Thomas Aquinas
Player of the Year - Anaya Brons, St. Thomas Aquinas
Rookie of the Year - Anaya Brons, St. Thomas Aquinas
Coach of the Year - Dickie Mahaffey, District of Columbia
*A three-way tie for the 11th and 12th spots resulted in one extra member on the Second Team