Three Gamecocks Earn All-SEC Honors
South Carolina men's tennis junior Daniel Rodrigues and sophomore Toby Samuel were named to the All-SEC First Team while sophomore Connor Thomson was named to the Second Team
Birmingham, Ala. – South Carolina men’s tennis junior Daniel Rodrigues and sophomore Toby Samuel were named to the All-SEC First Team while sophomore Connor Thomson was named to the Second Team, the conference announced Friday.
Rodrigues has a 24-4 record in singles on the season and an 11-1 record in regular season SEC play from the No. 1 position. He is ranked No. 2 in the ITA singles rankings and has a 18-4 record over ranked opponents, including 10 wins over top-50 competitors. The junior closed the regular season out with twelve consecutive ranked singles wins.
In doubles, Rodrigues is 19-6 on the season and 9-2 in SEC action from the No. 1 position. He holds a 7-4 record over ranked opponents with two of his wins over top-10 duos.
This honor is Rodrigues’ third time making the All-SEC First Team. He earned the honor previously in 2019 and 2020. He was also named to the SEC All-Freshman team in 2019.
Samuel has a 28-9 singles record on the season and an 8-2 regular season record in SEC play from the No. 2 position. He has a 17-5 record in dual match action and has clinched seven matches for the Gamecocks. Samuel has been ranked as high as No. 49 in the ITA singles rankings and ended the season on a seven-match singles win streak.
In doubles, Samuel is 19-9 on the season and 6-1 in SEC action. He has been ranked as high as No. 55 in doubles and ended the season on a four-match win streak.
This honor marks Samuel’s first appearance on the All-SEC First Team. He was named to both the All-Freshman Team and the All-SEC Second Team in 2021.
Thomson has a 29-9 overall singles record and a 19-5 record in dual match action. He holds an 8-2 record in SEC play from the No. 3 position with ranked singles win over Nos. 38, 51, and 74 during the dual season. Thomson has clinched three matches for the Gamecocks and has ranked as high as No. 16 in the nation during the 2021-22 season.
The sophomore is 21-9 overall in doubles with 16-4 record from the No. 1 doubles position and 7-2 record in SEC play. He has ranked as high as No. 4 in doubles and holds seven ranked wins with three wins over top-10 opponents.
This honor marks Thomson’s second appearance on the All-SEC Teams in as many season. He was named to both the SEC All-Newcomer Team and the First Team in 2021. This is his first appearance on the Second Team
Rodrigues, Samuel, Thomson and the Gamecock squad await a bid for the NCAA tournament that will be announced on Mon., May 2, at 6 p.m. The selection show will be aired on NCAA.com
For all the latest South Carolina men’s tennis information, continue to follow GamecocksOnline.com or the team on social media (@GamecockMTennis).
