SAN DIEGO – San Diego State men's tennis players Joe Tyler, Johannes Seeman and Victor Castro have been named All-Mountain West performers for the 2021-22 season. The announcement was made on Friday from the conference office in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Tyler garnered accolades in both singles and doubles, while Seeman was a singles honoree and Castro earned doubles acclaim in a vote of the league's head coaches.
Tyler, a transfer from Iowa, who hails from Corby, England, and Seeman, who is in his second year as an Aztec after transferring from Fresno State, are two of 12 student-athletes who earned All-Mountain West (MW) distinction as singles competitors. Tyler and Castro, the Aztecs primary doubles team at the No. 1 position, are one of six pairs to garner all-conference honors in doubles.
Taking advantage of the NCAA's offer of an additional year of eligibility due to the coronavirus pandemic, Tyler earned all-conference distinction for the first time in his college career, while Seeman is now a two-time All-MW honoree after earning the award last year. Castro, out of Novo Hamburgo, Brazil, garnered his second consecutive all-conference doubles award after he and Seeman secured the accolade last year.
With the Aztecs set to compete in the 2022 Mountain West Men's Tennis Championship later today, Tyler leads the team with 16 singles wins, including a 3-1 record in league play, and has won each of his last three matches. His match against Air Force's Robert Baylon, on March 13 at Aztecs Tennis Center, was in the second set when SDSU secured its 4-1 win over the Falcons.
Tyler earned two MW Player of the Week honors in 2021-22. On Feb. 9, he was recognized for the first time after playing a key role in SDSU's 2-1 record the prior week, combining for a 5-0 record in doubles and singles. His second honor was bestowed on Feb. 26, after he combined for a 4-0 record in doubles and singles, all in the No. 1 position. That time helped the Aztecs split a pair of home matches against the No. 46 Gonzaga and Pomona-Pitzer.
Seeman, who split time at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 positions, had a 3-2 record in the Mountain West this season and won a total of 10 singles matches, the first time he has reached double-digit wins in college. At the No. 3 position, the native of Parmu, Estonia, defeated Air Force's Nick Vroman 6-3, 6-1, when the teams played earlier this season.
On the doubles court, Tyler and Castro have compiled a team-leading 6-5 record this spring, all at the No. 1 position. The pair
finished the regular season with a 13-8 record, which includes a 3-2 mark in league matches.
The duo was ranked as high as No. 57 in the nation earlier this season and enjoyed their best run during league play, a three-match win streak from April 8 to April 16. During the span the duo defeated fellow all-league doubles teams: New Mexico's Arda Azkara and Nicolas Prieto and Utah State's David Cierny and Bodin Zarkovic.
The Aztecs, the 4-seed, are scheduled to play at 5-seed Air Force, the tournament host, at 2 p.m. MT in the opening round of the tournament. SDSU is 33-2 against Air Force all-time and has defeated the Falcons in each of its seven previous meetings in conference championship tournaments, including 4-0 wins in each of its last three (in 2004, 2010 and 2016).
2022 All-Mountain West Men's Tennis Team
Singles
Joe Tyler, Sr., San Diego State
Johannes Seeman, So., San Diego State
Robert Baylon, Sr., Air Force
Jonny Mascagni, Jr., Air Force
Pedro Liborio, Fr., Boise State
Simon Arca Costas, Sr., Boise State
Matheo Coupu, So., Nevada
Juan Battalla, So., Nevada
Arda Azkara, Fr., New Mexico
Christopher Bulus, Sr., UNLV
Bodin Zarovic, Jr., Utah State
David Cierny, Jr., Utah State
Doubles
Joe Tyler/Victor Castro, San Diego State
Robert Baylon/Jordan Azuma, Air Force
Simon Arca Costas/Caden Moortgat, Boise State
Satchel Benn/Loris Zisswiller, Nevada
Arda Azkara/ Nicolas Prieto, New Mexico
David Cierny/Bodin Zarkovic, Utah State
Player of the Year: Christopher Bulus, Sr., UNLV
Co-Freshman of the Year: Pedro Liborio, Boise State & Arda Azkara, New Mexico
-SDSU-