BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Valdosta State continues to be recognized on the Gulf South Conference’s All-Decade teams. This time, men’s and women’s tennis dominates the awards while golf places one.

In addition to individual awards, the VSU men’s tennis team was named the decade’s top team. The Blazers won six GSC titles, including four consecutive from 2007-10, and finished atop the GSC East five times throughout the decade. Head Coach John Hansen has led the men’s team to the NCAA postseason all 10 seasons, advancing to the national title match on four occasions, including this season, and winning the National Championship in 2004.

Women’s tennis finished behind West Florida for team of the decade while golf finished fourth in the rankings behind West Florida, North Alabama and Arkansas Tech in that order.

Christoph Schneider (2003-06), Eduardo Rincon (2004-05), Leos Jelinek (2006-09) and Joerg Ekkenga (2007-09) were the All-Decade honorees for men’s tennis. The foursome helped keep VSU consistently at the top as there were at least two All-Decade tennis players on the team from 2004-2009.

Schneider was a four-time first team All-GSC player culminating in a 2006 Player of the Year award his senior season. Rincon was a two-time All-American, twice being named to the conference’s first team. Jelinek and Ekkenga were both three-time All-Americans. Jelinek was named to the GSC’s first team four times and Ekkenga earned the honor three times.

Six Lady Blazers made the All-Decade team, four on the first team. Annika Biro (2003-06), Eva Petschnig (2003-05), Dominique Rothlaender (2007-10) and Anne Corten (2005-07) dominated the first team in the east. All four players were All-Americans, Petschnig leading the pack as she earned the honor three times. Both Rothlaender and Corten were two-time All-Americans while Biro made it in 2005. Biro held the edge in All-GSC honors though as she was a four-time GSC first teamer. Both Rothlaender and Corten made it three-times while Petschnig rounded out the group as a two-time honoree.

Raphaelle Durante (2007-10) and Natali Gumbrecht (2008-10) completed VSU’s group on the second team. Durante was a four-time All-GSC honoree and was twice named an All-American. Gumbrecht made first team All-GSC three times and dominated the GSC two seasons in a row as the GSC Player of the Year.

Brent Witcher was the lone representative of the Valdosta State golf team on the GSC All-Decade team, but he made it count as a first teamer. In Witcher’s time at VSU from 2007-2009, he was a two-time GSC Player of the Year and blew the nation away when he was named the 2009 NCAA Division II Player of the Year, earning the Jack Nicklaus Award.

No matter the sport, Valdosta State continues to be at the top of the Gulf South Conference and the nation.