NEW YORK – Creighton senior Alejandro Gandini was named the 2025 BIG EAST Men’s Tennis Player of the Year, as announced by the league on Thursday. The major awards further featured BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, DePaul’s Andy Hadziabdic, and Coaching Staff of the Year, St. John’s.
Gandini was joined on the All-BIG EAST First Team by Butler’s Patrick Joss, DePaul’s Matteo Iaquinto, Georgetown’s Jake Fellows, and St. John’s Max Amling and Carl Gustavsson. All members of the First Team were selected unanimously.
Hadziabdic headlined the All-Conference Second Team alongside Creighton’s Yuma Daijima, Georgetown’s Arthur O’Sullivan, Marquette’s Blake Roegner, and St. John’s Ryota Kaneda and Leonardo Mileikowsky. Daijima and O’Sullivan were honored unanimously.
Gustavsson, the 2025 BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player, earned All-BIG EAST honors for the fourth consecutive season. Gandini and Fellows picked up their third straight All-Conference nods while Iaquinto, Kaneda, and Roegner were recognized for the second year.
Gandini led Creighton to a runner-up finish at the 2025 BIG EAST Tennis Championship, marking the Bluejays’ first appearance in the league’s title match. This spring he owned an 11-7 record at No. 1 singles, including a 5-2 mark in BIG EAST play. He went 13-4 while playing with Daijima at No. 2 doubles, including an undefeated mark against BIG EAST opponents throughout the regular season (6-0). Gandini is the first BIG EAST Player of the Year and three-time All-Conference selection in Bluejay history.
Hadziabdic enjoyed a standout rookie campaign, going 13-7 while competing across singles positions 2-5. Versus conference opponents, the freshman owned a 5-1 record with notable victories over Xavier, Georgetown, and Marquette. Hadziabdic was named the BIG EAST Singles Player of the Week on Feb. 24 following a three-win weekend at DePaul’s George Lott Classic. He is the fifth BIG EAST Freshman of the Year in Blue Demon history (2015, ‘19, ‘22, ‘23, ‘25).
St. John’s was recognized as the Coaching Staff of the Year for the third time in Head Coach Dillon Pottish’s six-year tenure (2019, ’23, ‘25). His staff includes assistant coaches Carlos Maldonado and Brenden Volk as well as student manager Brandon Roldan.
Following an undefeated BIG EAST regular season (4-0), St. John’s earned the top seed in the BIG EAST Tennis Championship for the second straight year. They advanced to the tournament’s title match for the fifth consecutive season before sweeping Creighton to take the program’s eighth all-time BIG EAST crown and third under Pottish. St. John’s looks to extend their program-best 25-2 record when they meet Princeton on Saturday, May 3 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
2025 BIG EAST Men’s Tennis Major Awards & All-Conference Teams
BIG EAST Player of the Year: Alejandro Gandini, Creighton
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year: Andy Hadziabdic, DePaul
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year: St. John’s
All-BIG EAST First Team
Patrick Joss, Butler*
Alejandro Gandini, Creighton*
Matteo Iaquinto, DePaul*
Jake Fellows, Georgetown*
Max Amling, St. John’s*
Carl Gustavsson, St. John’s*
*denotes unanimous selection
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Yuma Daijima, Creighton*
Andy Hadziabdic, DePaul
Arthur O’Sullivan, Georgetown*
Blake Roegner, Marquette
Ryota Kaneda, St. John’s
Leonardo Mileikowsky, St. John’s
*denotes unanimous selection