Oak Ridge native, SVU tennis player earns All-District, All-Academic honors

Brian Blocher, a sophomore on Southern Virginia University’s men’s tennis team, was recently named to the Capital One Academic All-District First Team and was a Non-USCAA Sports National All-Academic award winner.

Blocher is originally from Oak Ridge, and he played at Webb School.

An SVU press release said the Capitol One all-district teams are divided into eight districts and are separated by NCAA Divisions I, II, III, and College Division—including NAIA, two-year, and independent institutions. To be recognized, a student athlete must have at least a 3.3 cumulative grade point average and serve as a key contributor to the team.

Team members are picked by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Blocher was selected from District One, which is comprised of colleges and universities from 16 states from Maine to North Carolina. He will also be considered for the Capital One Academic All-American Team to be announced in early June.

In addition to his success in the classroom, the second-year Southern Virginia member had a solid 2012-13 campaign, helping the Knights to a 7-8 team record this season, the release said. Blocher finished with an overall 7-7 mark in singles competition, including a 6-2 record at the No. 3 position while going 6-8 in doubles play.

In his rookie year, Blocher was 8-6 in singles matches as a freshman for a 2011-12 squad that finished 15-1, which not only set the mark for best record in program history but also the best single-season winning percentage (.938) of any athletic team in Southern Virginia history.

The release said Blocher is the first academic all-district selection in men’s tennis program history.

“This is a big step in Southern Virginia men’s tennis to have Brian win this award,” said fifth-year Head Coach Tony Caputo. “This honor plus he and Timothy [Birch] being named to the All-Academic team a few days ago are firsts for our program.”

The United States Collegiate Athletic Association announced its 2013 Non-USCAA Sports National All-Academic selections on May 14. Eight SVU scholar-athletes were honored, including Birch, a men’s tennis junior from Sandy, Utah.

They were the first All-Academic selections in men’s tennis program history, and they had to have earned a cumulative 3.5 grade point average or higher in their college career, an SVU press release said.

“These scholar-athletes deserve to be recognized for their academic accomplishments,” said Athletic Director Scott Y. Doxey. “This is a testament to the fact that these individuals are receiving a well-rounded education and are not simply focused on the athletic aspect of the college experience.”