Three Men’s Tennis Student-Athletes Earn CSC Academic All-District Honors
5/14/2024 12:14:00 PM | Men's Tennis
TULSA, Okla. — University of Tulsa men's tennis student-athletes Callum Gale, Thiago Pernas and Pierce Rollins have been named to the Academic All-District Team, announced Tuesday by College Sports Communicators (CSC). This honor recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the courts and in the classroom. The award-winning Tulsa men bring home the award after helping sweep the UTR Sports NIT Championship titles alongside the Tulsa women's tennis team.
A senior from Adelaide, Australia, Gale maintains a 3.645 GPA in exercise and sports science. Gale enjoyed his best season with the Golden Hurricane, going 16-12 in singles play and 16-13 in doubles action. In dual matches, Gale went 12-9 across the Nos. 2-4 positions and clinched team victories for the Hurricane six times this year, including wins over New Mexico State (7-0), Wichita State (4-0), Lindenwood twice (7-0 and 4-0), Temple and Pacific the NIT Championship title match. He also secured the doubles point for TU against Drake, Temple and Pacific.
Holding a 4.0 GPA for his master's in sports leadership, Pernas, a fifth-year player and East Tennessee State transfer in his senior eligibility, earned Tulsa's best singles record in dual-match play at 14-5 within the top three positions after missing the fall season with injury. He went 3-0 at No. 1 Singles and 2-0 at No. 3 Doubles during the NIT Championship to earn Men's MVP honors. In doubles action, Pernas earned an 11-2 combined record in all three positions of play and locked up the doubles point for the Hurricane against Oral Roberts, North Dakota, Saint Louis and New Mexico State twice.
Pierce, a Tulsa native in his senior eligibility, maintains a 3.667 GPA while working towards his MBA. Rollins took over both No. 1 positions for Tulsa after transferring from a four-year career at Texas A&M. Currently the 59th-ranked singles player in the nation, he has an overall record of 14-13 and a dual-match mark of 13-10 with a 4-4 record against nationally ranked individuals. He was the winning point in Tulsa's victories over Oral Roberts (7-0) and Drake (4-0). In doubles, he formed a nationally ranked tandem with teammate Timothy Carlsson Seger, ranking as high as No. 30 following a win over the nation's then-third-ranked duo from Illinois. Overall, Rollins went 19-10 in doubles matches with clinches against Oral Roberts, Nebraska, UCF, Oklahoma State, Illinois, New Mexico State, Wichita State, Memphis and Lindenwood.
Rollins will represent Tulsa in the NCAA Men's Singles Championship, beginning Monday, May 20, at Oklahoma State's Greenwood Tennis Center. Matchups will be determined closer to the tournament.
Players Mentioned
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