DENVER, Colo. – Lamar University freshman Daniel Sancho Arbizu has been named 2022 Western Athletic Conference Freshman and Player of the Year, while head coach Scott Shankles received WAC Coach of the Year honors announced league officials Wednesday afternoon. The announcement comes just days before the top-seeded Cardinals are set the host the WAC Championships and marks the second consecutive year that a Cardinal has been named league player of the year (2021 – Axel Vila Antuna, Southland).
 
Sancho Arbizu headlines a Cardinal squad that had five players named to eight spots, including four first-team selections. Among the Cardinals' eight selections, four were in singles with four doubles selections.
 
Joining Sancho Arbizu on the first team are freshman Max Amling (singles) and senior Joshua Taylor and freshman Martin Garcia-Ripoll in doubles. LU's second-team selections are Garcia-Ripoll (singles) and Juan Jose Rodriguez (singles and doubles – along with Sancho Arbizu).
 
Shankles guided the Red and White to a 16-7 (.696) overall record and a perfect 6-0 mark in their first season in the WAC. It marks the Cardinals' eighth conference title in program history, and the team's first since the 2017 campaign. The regular-season title came down to the last match of the season when LU faced previously undefeated New Mexico State and rallied from a third-set deficit on court No. 1 singles.
 
Sancho Arbizu posted a 15-5 singles record – all at the No. 1 singles position – with an undefeated record in conference play. Sancho Arbizu joined Rodridguez in doubles play to earn second-team honors. The duo went 11-6 on the season, including a 4-1 record in conference play and an 8-6 record at the No. 1 position. Rodriguez also received second-team honors in singles after going 13-7 in singles with a 4-2 record in conference play. Rodriguez spent most of the season at No. 2 singles where he posted an 11-5 record.
 
Freshman Max Amling recorded first-team honors in singles after a rookie season that saw him post a 13-8 overall record, including a 5-1 mark in conference play. Amling played the Nos. 2-4 singles spots with the majority of his matches coming at No. 3.
 
Garcia-Ripoll earned second-team honors in singles posting a 15-5 overall record, with a 5-1 mark in league matches. Garcia-Ripoll played most of his matches between Nos. 4-6 singles, including a 7-3 mark at No. 4 spot. Garcia-Ripoll teamed up with Taylor in doubles play to go a near perfect 17-3 on the season, with a perfect 6-0 record in conference play. The duo was 15-2 at the No. 3 spot.
 
 
The Cardinals will be back in action Saturday in the semifinals of the conference championships. Big Red will take on the winner of the No. 4 Grand Canyon vs. No. 5 UT Rio Grande Valley.