LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - Amaia Balaguer Brau was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division Athlete of the Year and Nicole Kempton earned PSAC West Freshman of the Year accolades as the Slippery Rock University women's tennis team had three players voted to the all-conference team, the league office announced Friday with the unveiling of its annual awards.
 
In addition to being named the Western Division's Athlete of the Year, Balaguer Brau was also recognized as a first team all-league performer as both a singles and doubles performer along Kempton, who earned second team All-PSAC West singles accolades to go with her doubles honor and Freshman of the Year award.
 
Rounding out The Rock's all-conference selections was Gabriela del Val del Toro, who was a first team All-PSAC West singles choice.  
 
Balaguer Brau becomes the fifth member of the Slippery Rock women's tennis program that has been voted the PSAC West Athlete of the Year. She joins former SRU greats Alexandra Bowen (1995), Ashley Michaux (2005), Lacey Cohen (2019) and Adriana Gonzalez Sanchez (2021) in the exclusive club.
 
Kempton meanwhile is the sixth Rock rookie to be cited as division's Freshman of the Year. SRU has now netted the award in back-to-back years: a season ago current teammate Dari Sakhanova was bestowed with the honor as well. The pair carry on a legacy of Slippery Rock athletes being recognized as the PSAC's top rookie that also includes Michaux (2003), Cohen (2017), Jessica Bungo (2001), Kayla Blackburn (2006) and Laura Handy (2007).
 
After joining the Slippery Rock women's tennis program prior to the start of the 2023-24 season as a sophomore transfer from St. Thomas Aquinas, Balaguer Brau quickly established herself as the top athlete in the PSAC West.
 
A three-time PSAC West Athlete of the Week, Balaguer Brau competed out of The Rock's top singles flight on the way to posting a stellar 19-9 overall record which included a 15-6 mark in dual matches and a 5-1 showing inside the PSAC West. She ended the season on a nine-match winning streak.
 
In addition to earning the PSAC West's top honor, Balaguer Brau was also recently named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Atlantic Region Player to Watch for 2024. She is currently No. 74 in the ITA's Division II national singles rankings.
 
Following a standout prep career at South Park High School, Kempton wasted no time proving she belonged in what was one of the deepest singles lineups in the Atlantic Region by posting a 15-7 overall record. Included in the 15 victories was a 13-6 showing in dual matches throughout the middle of SRU's singles rotation and a near perfect 4-1 record in conference play.
 
The Rock's only two newcomers to the 2024 roster also joined forces to occupy SRU's top doubles flight. As a team, Balaguer Brau and Kempton partnered to produce a 12-9 overall record and a 4-2 tally against Slippery Rock's divisional rivals.
 
del Val del Toro finished a standout collegiate career at The Rock with another great senior season in which she posted a 17-9 overall singles record that included a 12-6 mark in second the flight of dual matches and a 4-1 showing in PSAC West competition.
 
A four-time All-PSAC West honoree, del Val del Toro will leave SRU as the fifth winningest athlete in program history with 141 career victories. In addition to her athletic prowess, she was also recently named to College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team.
 
The trio helped to lead Slippery Rock to a 15-8 team record in 2024. SRU advanced to the finals of the PSAC Tournament for a third consecutive year before earning an NCAA Tournament bid where The Rock would win their first-round contest before losing in the Round of 32.
 
Slippery Rock has now made 20 NCAA Tournament appearance in program history and 19 trips to the national tournament under head coach Matt Meredith. SRU has won at least one NCAA Tournament match in each of the last three years.




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