NEW ORLEANS- The No. 58 Georgia State men's tennis team earned five all-conference awards and seven academic awards at the Sun Belt Conference tournament banquet, the league announced Thursday night.

Leading the team with two awards, junior Zackery Kennedy earned a spot on the All-Conference Singles First Team and the Student-Athlete to Watch award. Kennedy comes in second on the team for his singles record, winning 12 of his 18 matches.

Sophomore Jannis Koeke was the other Panther named to the All-Conference Singles First Team, tying for fourth on the team with an 11-8 singles record at the No. 1 position. Doubles pair Sebastian Acuna and Andrei Andrukhou were named to the All-Conference Doubles Second Team, with an 11-7 record at the No. 1 position.

Head coach Brett Ross was named Coach of the Year for his turnaround of the men's tennis program. The team went 9-13 last year, earning eight fewer wins than this year's team.

The Panthers were also named to three academic lists, with seven honors overall. GSU had the highest overall GPA, with Joseph Bishop and Acuna named to the Academic Honor Roll. Koeke, Felipe Jaworski, Valentin Horvat, and Chinmay Handa were named to the Sun Belt Commissioners List for their efforts in the classroom.

"I'm excited for the individuals who were honored tonight," Ross said. "I feel like we have a really talented group and it's great to see them recognized. I'm also very proud of the academic achievements of the team as a whole. It speaks to the potential of these guys after their tennis careers are over."

Georgia State is entering the tournament at the No. 1 seed, earning a bye in the first round. The team will open tournament play in the semifinals on Saturday at 3 p.m., playing the winner of the No. 4 UL Lafayette/No. 5 UT Arlington match. Live stats and radio broadcasts will be available for the match.

Keep up with the latest news at GeorgiaStateSports.com and on Twitter (@GSUMTennis).