May 3, 2005

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Coe College sophomore Ryan Yao (Naperville, Ill./Nequa Valley) has been named 2005 IIAC men’s tennis Most Valuable Player and Coe head coach Eric Rodgers was named 2005 IIAC men’s tennis Coach of the Year.

Yao posted a 46-14 record during the season including a 23-8 singles mark and a 23-6 doubles mark, leading Coe to its fifth straight Conference team title and winning the Flight A singles title. Half of his eight singles defeats were against nationally ranked opponents. His .742 singles winning percentage was 10th in the Conference among players with 10 or more decisions and his .667 winning percentage at #1 singles (16-8) was third-best in the Conference. Yao and doubles partner Jake Michael ranked second overall with a .793 winning percentage in doubles including the top winning percentage at #3 doubles (16-5, .762). This is the seventh straight year the Conference’s men’s tennis MVP came from Coe. Yao is the third different player to be named MVP during that stretch following Johnny Watson (1999-2001) and Nick Barnes (2002-04).

Rodgers led the Kohawks to a 23-8 dual meet record and its fifth straight Conference title. He recorded his 300th career victory in the quarterfinals of the Conference Team Tournament. This is the third consecutive season Rodgers has earned Conference Coach of the Year honors.

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