Ruiz Martinez Named ECC Men's Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year

5/14/2019 9:15:00 AM

By: By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

AMHERST, N.Y. - Senior Ricardo Ruiz Martinez (Valencia, Spain) of Daemen College has been named the East Coast Conference Men's Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The official announcement of ECC Scholar-Athletes of the Year in all sports was made last evening at the annual ECC Awards Dinner held on the campus of Mercy College.

To be considered for the award, nominated student-athletes from the league's 10 member and 13 associate member schools must achieve a minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.30 (on a 4.00 scale), must have been a starter or key reserve for their respective team and they must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at their institution.

A Business Administration major, Ruiz Martinez has maintained a 3.95 GPA in the classroom while putting his stamp on one of the finest athletic careers for a men's tennis player at Daemen. The Spaniard has been a two-time All-East Coast Conference Second Team selection. He's also been a two-time Intercollegiate Tennis Association Scholar-Athlete honoree and a 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-District Men's At-Large Team selection.

After beginning his career at American International College, Ruiz Martinez racked up 67 combined singles/doubles wins over parts of three seasons for the Wildcats, ranking second all-time. He also ranks second in career singles wins (36) and fourth in career doubles wins (31). Ruiz Martinez graduates as the program's all-time record holder for career singles winning percentage (.545), career doubles winning percentage (.477), single-season singles victories (17 in 2017-18) and single-season singles winning percentage (.654 in 2017-18).

"I was very proud to learn that Rico was named the ECC Men's Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year. He is very deserving of this award," said head coach Kerry McDermott who recently completed his first season with the Wildcats, and his 37th as a collegiate head coach overall. "Rico is a great example of what it means to be a student-athlete. His hard work and commitment to excel both on and off the court are commendable traits that we hold in high regard within our program."

During the 2018-19 season, Ruiz Martinez led the team with 20 combined singles/doubles wins. Seven of his nine singles wins came in the No. 1 position in Daemen's lineup, and he shared the team lead with 11 doubles victories as well.

Ruiz Martinez becomes the first Daemen men's tennis player to garner ECC Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors, and the eighth Daemen athlete overall to do so. Past recipients from Daemen include Amy Trabert (2018 - women's outdoor track and field), Mackenzie Donahue (2017 - women's outdoor track and field), Amber Drzymala (2017 - women's volleyball), Hayle Scanlan (2017 - women's tennis), Kevin Roginson (2016 - men's indoor track and field) and Matt VanDeMortel (2016 - men's outdoor track and field)

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