October 22, 2009

CEDAR RAPIDS , IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Luther College senior Kelsie Allen (Eagan, Minn./Eastview) has been selected IIAC Women's Tennis Most Valuable Player for the 2009 season, while Luther head coach Brian Huinker has been selected as the 2009 Iowa Conference Women's Tennis Coach of the Year. Both awards were voted by the Conference coaches following the Conference Championship.

Allen led the Norse to a league-record 24th Iowa Conference title. Also the 2006 champion at No. 3 doubles (with Amy Christenson), she captured the Flight A singles title at the Iowa Conference Women's Tennis Individual Championships, needing third-set tiebreakers to win her quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship matches. She became the first Luther player since Maria Miller in 1999 to with the Conference's top singles title or be named Iowa Conference MVP. Allen and partner Brynne Zinnecker also finished third in Flight A doubles at the 2009 Championships. Allen is the ninth Luther student-athlete to be named Iowa Conference MVP in women's tennis, representing a total of 16 honors.

She posted an 11-2 overall singles record during the fall season with the only blemishes coming in a three-set loss to Wis.-LaCrosse's Kelly Kuether in the Norse' season-opener and to Wheaton (Ill.) All-American Elizabeth Worsowicz. She posted a 12-4 record in doubles with Zinnecker, competing primarily at the No. 1 position. The tandem was able to avenge two of those losses, defeating Coe's Andrea Schupbach and Michelle Schupbach in the championship match of the Iowa Conference Women's Tennis Team Championship, and defeating Central's Faith Bliss and Kayla Donner in the Flight A third-place match one week later.

Huinker guided Luther to a 14-2 mark during the fall season, including a 9-1 mark against Iowa Conference competition. The Norse posted a 5-0 semifinal win over Wartburg before upsetting top-seeded and three-time defending champion Coe 5-1 in the Championship final. This marks the first time Huinker has been named IIAC Women's Tennis Coach of the Year. He has previously been honored as IIAC Men's Tennis Coach of the Year on five occasions (2001, 2006-2009).

The Conference previously announced the Women's Tennis All-Conference Team in conjunction with the Individual Tournament. The quarterfinalists in Flight A singles and semifinalists in Flight A doubles are recognized as All-Conference. The complete 2009 IIAC Women's Tennis All-Conference Team is attached.

The complete 2009 IIAC Women's Tennis All-Conference Team can be found here.

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