RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis team learned on Wednesday that Sam Whitehead, Santiago Serrano, Michael Chan, Will Roberts, and Paolo Bonaguro were named to the Southland Conference (SLC) 2026 Men's Tennis All-Academic Team.
 
To be eligible for the All-Academic Team, student-athletes must have a cumulative GPA of 3.25 or better with at least one semester completed at the nominating institution and must have played in at least 50% of the team's games. To be eligible for Student-Athlete of the Year, the minimum GPA is 3.50 along with the other requirements.
 
Whitehead was named First Team All-Conference at No. 1 doubles and Second Team All-Conference at No. 1 singles earlier this season, leading UTRGV to a second-consecutive second-place finish in the regular season. Whitehead ended his career on a 7-3 run over his final 12 matches which included two wins against rival Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC), the former helped clinch the South Texas Showdown for the athletics department and the latter in the SLC Tournament Semifinals.
 
In doubles, Whitehead led the team in wins, earning victories against Arkansas, Oklahoma State, and a ranked win over Saint Joseph's in non-conference play before going 4-1 in conference play. He once again earned a doubles win over TAMUCC in the SLC Semifinal to help clinch the doubles point.
 
A First Team All-Conference honoree at No. 2 doubles, Serrano and junior Ivo Isqueiro went 4-1 in conference play, picking up wins against TAMUCC, Lamar, Nicholls, and New Orleans (UNO) in the regular season. They clinched all four doubles points won by UTRGV during the conference slate. The duo also clinched the doubles point in UTRGV's SLC Semifinal match with TAMUCC. In singles, Serrano went 3-2 in conference play, including a dominant 6-2, 6-3 win over regular season champion, UIW, at court three.
 
Chan was named First Team All-Conference at No. 6 singles and was named UTRGV's Male Breakout Athlete of the Year after picking up a team-high 10 singles wins, which included a 9-5 record, 3-2 SLC, at No. 6 singles. Chan earned non-conference wins against Rice and SMU during non-conference play and clinched UTRGV's 4-3 win over TAMUCC in conference play, securing the South Texas Showdown for the athletics department for the third time in school history.
 
Roberts ended the regular season with a 5-3 record in his final 10 matches, picking up wins against Alcorn State and Mount St. Mary's at No. 4 singles to wrap up non-conference play. In SLC play, he played at court five, earning wins over Nicholls, Lamar, and regular season champion, UIW. Roberts started the year opposite Whitehead in doubles, picking up wins against Arkansas, Oklahoma State, and a ranked win against Saint Joseph's.
 
Bonaguro helped anchor the doubles lineup, accumulating a 6-4 record at No. 3 doubles. Bonaguro and his doubles partner, Chan, earned wins against Alcorn State, Jackson State, Mount St. Mary's, and UC San Diego in non-conference play and defeated New Orleans and Nicholls in conference play. In singles, Bonaguro earned wins against Alcorn State, Mount St. Mary's, and Saint Louis.
 
2026 Men's Tennis Student-Athlete of the Year – Josef Zapletal, TAMUCC, Sr.
 
2026 Southland Conference Men's Tennis All-Academic Team
Michael Chan, UTRGV*
Santiago Serrano, UTRGV*
Sam Whitehead, UTRGV*
Paolo Bonaguro, UTRGV
Will Roberts, UTRGV
Santiago Flyckt, UIW*
Emilio Vila, UIW*
Alexandre Chauvel Gobin, UIW
Gerardo Delgado, UIW
Ian Uraga, UIW
Etienne Marty, TAMUCC*
Josef Zapletal, TAMUCC*
Louis Drapeau, Lamar
Maxwell Lindstedt, Lamar
Vincente Monge, Lamar
Leon Nickel, Lamar
Rintaro Shukuda, Lamar
Gonzalo Cotter, UNO
Beltran Fernandez, UNO
Carlos Melgosa, UNO
Jacob Rouleau-Mailly, UNO
Evgenios Vasilakis, UNO
Mitchell Armbruster, Nicholls
Marcell Marki, Nicholls
Mitchell Spence, Nicholls
*All-Conference First Team Selections
 
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