Zorzi Earns Back-to-Back Player of the Year Honors :: Joins former Argonaut Radovan Chrz as the only two-time GSC East Division Players of the Year.

Joins former Argonaut Radovan Chrz as the only two-time GSC East Division Players of the Year.

April 20, 2007

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - For the second consecutive season, junior Diego Zorzi (Buenos Aires, Argentina) has been selected as the best men's tennis player in the Gulf South Conference East Division. On Friday, Zorzi earned his second straight GSC East Division Player of the Year honor. Zorzi was one of four Argonauts to earn All-GSC First Team accolades.

Zorzi is only the second two-time conference player of the year honoree. Former Argonaut Radovan Chrz took home the honors in 2003 and 2005. Zorzi is the fifth Argonaut men's tennis player to earn three All-GSC First Team selections.

Zorzi, who started the season unranked, has moved up to a number seven ranking in singles with a 13-0 record. Ten of his wins have come in the second position. Zorzi is equally as impressive in doubles. Along with teammate Luis Arboleda (Medellin, Colombia), Zorzi is ranked 19th in doubles with a 19-1 record. In his career, Zorzi has totaled 45 singles and 62 doubles victories.

After transferring from nationally-ranked Drury, senior Dante Bottini (Coronel Pringles, Argentina) earned All-GSC honors. Ten of Bottini's 11 singles wins occurred in the first position. He is currently ranked sixth in Division II in singles with an 11-4 record. Bottini and teammate Nicolas Barrientos (Cali, Colombia) have also combined to form the second-ranked doubles team in the nation.

Barrientos was named to the All-GSC First Team after earning second team honors in 2006. Currently ranked 38th in singles, Barrientos is 12-9, including an 8-3 record in the third position. Along with Bottini, Barrientos has tallied an 18-3 record for the second-ranked doubles team. Barrientos is averaging 15 singles wins and 22 doubles triumphs over his first three seasons.

Eduardo Cavasotti (Florianopolis, Brazil) earned his second consecutive All-GSC First Team selection. Cavasotti posted double-figure win totals in singles and doubles. He was 10-9 in singles, while primarily playing in the third and fourth positions. In doubles, Cavasotti posted a 16-6 record. Fifteen of his doubles wins were with teammate Luiz Bernardi (Campinas, Brazil).

West Florida, the top-seed from the GSC East Division, will face GSC West fourth seed Christian Brothers in the quarterfinals of the Carpet One/GSC Men's Tennis Tournament in Arkadelphia, Ark. The match will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday.