Lady Razorbacks reel in postseason SEC honors; Hegarty SEC Coach of the Year

FAYETTEVILLE – It was all smiles on Wednesday when the 16th-ranked University of Arkansas Lady Razorback tennis team earned four postseason honors by the Southeastern Conference.Head coach Michael Hegarty was named SEC Coach of the Year, junior Aurelija Miseviciute earned SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, while both Misevicute and Ela Kaluder were unanimous selections as first-team All-SEC.“It’s a great honor to win an award like this and it really is a reflection of the outstanding student-athletes within our program,” said Hegarty. “Coach [Jeroen] Joling also shares this award with me as his contributions have been incredible this season.”Miseviciute, currently ranked No. 2 in the nation, has illustrated her ability on the court all season, and is now recognized for what she is doing in the classroom. Miseviciute’s 9-2 record in SEC action, along with being ranked No. 1 nationally for the majority of the season, and a 3.8 grade point average earned her the scholar-athlete honor.“The scholar-athlete award is a really special honor because of its all-around nature both on and off the court, and Aurelija [Miseviciute] is the complete student-athlete,” Hegarty said.Juniors Miseviciute and Kaluder have been a vital part of the successful 2008 season for the SEC Western Division champion Lady’Backs. Their dazzling season earned them both unanimous selections to the 2008 All-SEC First Team. Kaluder, currently ranked No. 69, took her game to another level in SEC play with a 9-2 record.“First-team all-SEC is one of the great honors in NCAA athletics, while it’s incredibly rare to have two athletes being honored for it in the same season,” Hegarty said. “They have both led us from the start of the season and we expect the best is yet to come for the both of them.”The Lady’Backs are currently in Auburn, Ala. preparing for the SEC Tournament which begins on Thursday. Arkansas received a first-round bye and will play the winner of Alabama and LSU at 10 a.m. on Friday.For the latest results from the SEC Women’s Tennis Tournament visit LADYBACKS.COM.