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Sept. 4, 2002

Tar Heels Place 11 Players On ACC Top 50 Men's Tennis Team Professional stars Freddie McNair and Don Johnson are amongst UNC selectees.

GREENSBORO, N.C.--Eleven University of North Carolina players are included on the list of the 50 greatest Atlantic Coast Conference men's tennis players of all time, announced Tuesday by the ACC Office. UNC's representatives are diverse in nature and include nine All-America selections as well as six players who played professional tennis.

Among the Tar Heel selections are professional doubles stars Freddie McNair and Don Johnson, the latter a two-time Wimbledon doubles titlist. All 11 players on the list won ACC championships either individually or as a team. All earned collegiate All-America honors save Johnson and O.H. Parrish, who were both outstanding players in the ACC ranks. 2000 UNC alumnus Tripp Phillips was the first UNC men's tennis Patterson Medal winner in a half century. The Patterson Medal goes to UNC's outstanding senior athlete.

"I'm very proud of the large number of UNC student-athletes named to the team," said Sam Paul, whose tenure at UNC as assistant and head tennis coach dates to 1989. "This is an amazingly representative list and includes players who have been dominant forces both in the ACC and on the national scene."

Following is the complete list of Tar Heel honorees:

Billy Brock	David Caldwell	Jeff Chambers	Don Johnson

Bryan Jones	Richie McKee	Freddie McNair	O.H. Parrish

Tripp Phillips	George Sokol	Roland Thornqvist

Billy Brock (1973-76, Norfolk, Va.) was a Coach Don Skakle protege, was a member of four Atlantic Coast Conference championship teams at Carolina and was an All-America in singles in 1976. Brock was a powerhouse on the court and a member of North Carolina teams that lost only eight dual matches in his four-year career, including four undefeated seasons in the ACC. Brock won two ACC individual flight singles titles, at #3 in 1974 and #1 in 1975, and also took home a doubles title in 1975 with partner Tommy Dixon.

David Caldwell (1973-96, Richmond, Va.) was a two-time All-American David Caldwell left a legacy at Carolina that will be difficult to match by any future Tar Heel. At North Carolina, he continued his winning ways, becoming the only Atlantic Coast Conference men's tennis player to earn ACC Player of the Year honors three times, in 1994, 1995 and 1996. Caldwell was named an ITA All-American in singles as both a sophomore and a junior, and was a doubles All-American with partner Brint Morrow as a junior. Caldwell was 16-0 in ACC singles as a junior and a senior, and is the only player to ever win three individual ACC flight titles at #1 singles. He won the 1995 Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship. The 1996 Region II Men's Tennis Player of the Year, Caldwell received NCAA singles invitations in 1994, 1995 and 1996 and was an NCAA quarterfinalist in 1995. A three-time All-ACC selection.

Jeff Chambers (1984-87, St. Petersburg, Fla.) is the only Carolina player in history to receive an NCAA singles invitation each of his four years as a Tar Heel, Chambers attended the NCAA Tournament in 1984, 1985, 1986 and 1987. He was named an All-America in singles in 1985 after capturing the ACC individual flight championship at #2 singles and going 26-8 overall. Chambers also attended the NCAA Tournament in doubles three times, missing only in 1986. The St. Petersburg, Fla., native was a three-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection.

Don Johnson (1987-90, Pittsburgh, Pa.) has distinguished himself as one of the world's best doubles players. In 2001 he teamed with Jared Palmer to win the doubles title at Wimbledon, finish as the runnersup at the U.S. Open and represent the United States Davis Cup Team. Palmer and Johnson competed for the U.S. in Davis Cup play against India in Winston-Salem, N.C. He also won the mixed doubles championship at Wimbledon in 2000 and the men's World Doubles Championship in 2001. Johnson is a 1990 graduate of the University of North Carolina. He played tennis at UNC for four years. As a senior he was named first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference and he played #2 singles on a team which won the Tar Heels' first Atlantic Coast Conference championship in 12 years.

Bryan Jones (1989-92, Kings Mountain, N.C.) is one of two Carolina players in history to be named the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament Most Valuable Player, Bryan Jones received that honor and many more in 1992 as the senior tri-captain led the Tar Heels to one of the school's most successful seasons, setting a school record for team wins (25-5). Jones also was named the ACC Player of the Year in 1992 and helped lead the team to the 1992 ACC Tournament Championship. It was the second such championship for UNC during Jones' tenure, as Carolina also won the coveted trophy in 1990 when Jones was a sophomore. The Kings Mountain, N.C., native was named an All-America selection in singles after finishing with a 35-7 overall record, was named the ITA Region II Volvo Tennis/Senior.

Richie McKee (1971-74, Charlotte, N.C.) won much fame playing collegiate tennis, earning All-America honors in singles as a sophomore, junior and senior. The son of teaching pro Dick McKee, who reached the finals at Wimbledon after a career at the University of Miami, McKee's playing improved with each year he spent at Carolina. He became known as much for his quiet on-the-court manner as for his tennis talent. A team captain, McKee and doubles partner Freddie McNair reached the NCAA doubles finals in 1973, and the two won the 1971 and 1972 Atlantic Coast Conference doubles titles. In singles, McKee won two ACC titles, at #4 in 1971 and #3 in 1972.

Freddie McNair (1970-73, Chevy Chase, Md.) is the only Carolina player to win All-America honors throughout his four years in Chapel Hill, Freddie McNair probably ranks as Carolina's finest player behind Vic Seixas. While at Carolina, McNair combined with Richie McKee to reach the NCAA doubles finals in 1973. In the Atlantic Coast Conference, he won three individual singles titles in 1970, 1971 and 1972 and three doubles titles, one with Joe Dorn in 1970 and two with McKee in 1971 and 1972. He went on to have a distinguished professional career, attaining the world's #1 doubles ranking with teammate Sherwood Stewart in the late 1970s.

O.H. Parrish (1963-65, Richmond, Va.) played on three ACC championship teams for Carolina in the mid 1960s. In 1965 he won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship at #1 singles. He was the Atlantic Caoast Conference champion in doubles in 1964 while playing with Ted Hoehn. In 1965 he captured the ACC championship at #1 doubles playing with Bronson Van Wyck.

Tripp Phillips (1996-2000, Charlotte, N.C.) was an intense competitor and valued team leader, Tripp Phillips, of Charlotte, NC, earned All-America status his senior season. After returning from a medical redshirt, Phillips had an outstanding senior campaign, posting a stellar 25-6 singles record from the #1 singles position. However, Phillips saved his best performance of the year for last as he advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships. Phillips performance elevated him in the ITA rankings as he finished 2000 ranked #12 nationally in singles. Phillips career and character were honored as he received the prestigious Patterson Medal and the John Van Nostrand Award. He and UNC soccer player Lorrie Fair won the 1999-2000 Patterson Medals. He was the first tennis player so honored since Vic Seixas in 1949-50.

George Sokol (1962-64, Bryn Mawr, Pa.) was named an All-America in singles as a junior in 1963, George Sokol had a distinguished tennis career at Carolina. He was the Tar Heels' first dominant presence in the Atlantic Coast Conference, which began selecting a singles champion in 1954. From 1954 to 1964, the ACC chose a sole singles champion before going to individual flight titles thereafter. Sokol won three of those titles, in 1962, 1963 and 1964. Sokol also won an outright ACC doubles title in 1963, with partner Keith Stoneman.

Roland Thornqvist (1991-93, Farsta, Sweden) was named an All-American in both singles and doubles by the ITA in both 1992 and 1993. His greatest accomplishment, however, was winning the Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award in both 1992 and 1993. He is the first player in the history of college tennis to win the prestigious honor twice. In 1993, he captured the singles title in the Rolex/ITA National Indoor Championships, one of the collegiate grand slams; was named to the Rolex Collegiate All-Star Team; was the ITA Region II Senior Player of the Year and the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year. Thornqvist was the ACC champion at #1 singles in both his sophomore and senior years and he won the #1 doubles crown as a senior, with Daryl Wyatt. A three-time All-ACC selection, Thornqvist qualified for the NCAA Tournament in singles three years and in doubles twice. He was a quarterfinalist in singles in both 1992 and 1993, and in doubles in 1992.