Kuhar, Pertile claim NEC honors

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Bryant University men's tennis redshirt-junior Matt Kuhar (Smithfield, R.I.) and freshman Grant Pertile (Edgartown, Mass.) have been named the Northeast Conference Player and Rookie of the Month, respectively, on Thursday.

The honors include all of the matches played up through Wednesday. Bryant is 7-12 overall and 2-0 against NEC competition at this point in the season.

Kuhar is enjoying one of the most impressive spring seasons in program and conference history. He is 13-2 at No. 1 singles during the spring and 19-6 overall on the year. Kuhar's victories have come over some of the best players in college tennis this season, including No. 52 Billy Griffith (Cal) and No. 125 Andy Zhou (Harvard). He was also up a set on then-No. 12 Ferran Calvo (Oklahoma) and split sets with No. 119 Dan Martin (Dartmouth). His two losses came against No. 78 Julian Cash (Oklahoma St.) and No. 115 Jordan Benjamin (Dayton).

Pertile becomes the third different Bryant freshmen to win rookie of the month honors, joining Trent Massam (Wellington, New Zealand) and Philip Belmatch (Staten Island, N.Y.). He has thrived in doubles play, posting a 12-5 mark during the spring season. Pertile has been at his best when teamed up with senior Luke Lorenz (Colorado Springs, Colo.), as the duo has posted an 11-3 mark. They have picked up wins over teams from Tulsa, Creighton, Lamar, Brown, Richmond, Navy, Army and Dayton to name a few.