Coe's Lucero, Sprinkel Named IIAC Athletes of the Week

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Coe College tennis players Tai Lucero (Odessa, Texas / Permian) and Noah Sprinkel (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) have been named IIAC Athletes of the Week for the week ending Sunday, September 22. The Conference also announced Performers of the Week in eight fall sports plus men's tennis, which held its annual individual tournament last weekend.

Women's Tennis — Tai Lucero, Coe College, Odessa, Texas / Permian

Lucero, a senior, advanced to the Round of 16 in the singles draw and the quarterfinals in the doubles draw at the USTA/ITA Midwest Region Championships. She posted a pair of straight set singles victories before falling to St. Thomas (Minn.)'s Shelby Henderson, 6-7 (2), 6-4, 7-6 (8), in a match that lasted nearly four hours. Playing with Jordan Ferree, she added two wins in the doubles draw before falling, 8-6, to Carleton's Anne Lombardi and Michaela Becich, the top-seeded tandem in the draw.

In a September 18 dual win over Wartburg, she posted a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles over Katherine Ross and paired with Ferree for an 8-1 win at No. 1 doubles. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Men's Tennis — Noah Sprinkel, Coe College, Minneapolis, Minn. / South

Sprinkel, a junior, captured the Flight A singles and doubles titles at the 2013 Iowa Conference Men's Tennis Individual Tournament. Last year's Iowa Conference MVP won the Flight A singles title for the second time in three seasons and followed it up with a third consecutive Flight A doubles crown.

He posted a 6-0, 6-1 win over teammate Ryan Hickman in the semifinals to advance to the championship match against Luther's Ramesh Karki in a rematch of their 2011 Flight A singles finale. The result was much the same, as Sprinkel cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 victory.

In doubles, Sprinkel and new partner Riley Galbraith dropped only five games over the course of the tournament, including an 8-0 whitewashing of Luther's Karki and Kyle Appel in the semifinals, en route to the title. Sprinkel and Galbraith topped Luther's James Ayer and Isaiah Mayerchak, 8-3, for the title. It was third doubles title for Sprinkel, who won in 2011 and 2012 with Curtis Newman. (IIAC Male Athlete of the Week)