Bucknell University Athletics
Tahirovic, McDonald Collect Men’s Tennis Major Awards, Kilmer Earns All-Patriot League Nod
5/1/2026 3:00:00 PM | Men's Tennis
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Senior Amar Tahirovic repeated as Patriot League Men's Tennis Player of the Year, and he joined classmate Brendan McDonald on the PL Doubles Team of the Year, highlighting Bucknell's postseason awards haul on Friday. Tahirovic also became a rare four-time First Team All-Patriot League selection, and junior Liam Kilmer earned his first all-conference citation with a Second Team nod.
Tahirovic will go down as one of the top performers in Bucknell and Patriot League men's tennis history. He is only the fourth player to earn multiple Patriot League Player of the Year honors. One of those was Nick Bybel in 2015 and 2016, who is the only other Bison to earn the honor. Army's Asika Isoh was also a two-time honoree, and Navy's Alan Ton was a three-time Player of the Year.
Tahirovic is the 21st four-time All-Patriot League selection and the 14th to garner First Team honors all four years. He joins Bybel as the only Bucknell players to earn the quad, which is fitting since they now rank 1-2 on Bucknell's all-time wins list. In the last match of the season, Tahirovic posted his 113th career singles win, which is one more than Bybel's previous record of 112. Tahirovic graduates with 205 combined singles/doubles wins, which also surpassed Bybel's previous mark of 192.
Tahirovic finished the 2025-26 season with a 30-7 singles record, making him the first player in team history to have two 30-win seasons. He departs with a final mark of 113-25, good for a .819 winning percentage that ranks sixth in program history.
Tahirovic repeated as both singles and doubles champion at the Patriot League's qualifier for the ITA Conference Masters Championship, and for the second straight year he won the doubles title with McDonald. The duo then went on to reach the semifinals of the national tournament in San Diego, falling one win shy of a bid to the NCAA Championships. McDonald earned the ITA Sportsmanship Award at that tournament.
McDonald graduates as the winningest doubles player in Bucknell history. He went 23-9 this season to bring his career record to 96-38. Ryan Sandburg's previous mark of 87 doubles wins had stood since 2009. McDonald's .716 doubles winning percentage is sixth-best in team annals.
The Patriot League has awarded a Doubles Team of the Year since 2015, and McDonald and Tahirovic are the first Bison pair to be voted since Bybel and Bryan Adams in that first season in 2015.
Kilmer enjoyed an outstanding junior season, finishing with a 19-11 singles record, including a 10-3 mark in the No. 2 spot in the lineup and 2-0 in two matches at No. 1. He went 7-1 in three-set matches and closed out the year with a straight-set win against Lehigh in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals.
2026 Patriot League Men's Tennis Major Awards
Player of the Year - Amar Tahirovic, Bucknell
Rookie of the Year - Aleksandar Daskalovic, Lehigh
Doubles Team of the Year - Amar Tahirovic and Brendan McDonald, Bucknell
Coaching Staff of the Year - Navy, Head Coach Chris Garner
Men's Tennis All-League First Team
Amar Tahirovic, Bucknell
Herrick Legaspi, Navy
Alex Van Lumich, Lehigh
Jackson Armistead, Army West Point
Jimin Jung, Army West Point
Charlie Spencer, Navy
Men's Tennis All-League Second Team *
Sean Jaeger, Lehigh
Ricky Espaillat, Lafayette
Matt Carlson, Holy Cross
Liam Kilmer, Bucknell
Petter Hagen, Loyola Maryland
Alon Ton, Army West Point
JJ Etterbeek, Navy
Tahirovic will go down as one of the top performers in Bucknell and Patriot League men's tennis history. He is only the fourth player to earn multiple Patriot League Player of the Year honors. One of those was Nick Bybel in 2015 and 2016, who is the only other Bison to earn the honor. Army's Asika Isoh was also a two-time honoree, and Navy's Alan Ton was a three-time Player of the Year.
Tahirovic is the 21st four-time All-Patriot League selection and the 14th to garner First Team honors all four years. He joins Bybel as the only Bucknell players to earn the quad, which is fitting since they now rank 1-2 on Bucknell's all-time wins list. In the last match of the season, Tahirovic posted his 113th career singles win, which is one more than Bybel's previous record of 112. Tahirovic graduates with 205 combined singles/doubles wins, which also surpassed Bybel's previous mark of 192.
Tahirovic finished the 2025-26 season with a 30-7 singles record, making him the first player in team history to have two 30-win seasons. He departs with a final mark of 113-25, good for a .819 winning percentage that ranks sixth in program history.
Tahirovic repeated as both singles and doubles champion at the Patriot League's qualifier for the ITA Conference Masters Championship, and for the second straight year he won the doubles title with McDonald. The duo then went on to reach the semifinals of the national tournament in San Diego, falling one win shy of a bid to the NCAA Championships. McDonald earned the ITA Sportsmanship Award at that tournament.
McDonald graduates as the winningest doubles player in Bucknell history. He went 23-9 this season to bring his career record to 96-38. Ryan Sandburg's previous mark of 87 doubles wins had stood since 2009. McDonald's .716 doubles winning percentage is sixth-best in team annals.
The Patriot League has awarded a Doubles Team of the Year since 2015, and McDonald and Tahirovic are the first Bison pair to be voted since Bybel and Bryan Adams in that first season in 2015.
Kilmer enjoyed an outstanding junior season, finishing with a 19-11 singles record, including a 10-3 mark in the No. 2 spot in the lineup and 2-0 in two matches at No. 1. He went 7-1 in three-set matches and closed out the year with a straight-set win against Lehigh in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals.
2026 Patriot League Men's Tennis Major Awards
Player of the Year - Amar Tahirovic, Bucknell
Rookie of the Year - Aleksandar Daskalovic, Lehigh
Doubles Team of the Year - Amar Tahirovic and Brendan McDonald, Bucknell
Coaching Staff of the Year - Navy, Head Coach Chris Garner
Men's Tennis All-League First Team
Amar Tahirovic, Bucknell
Herrick Legaspi, Navy
Alex Van Lumich, Lehigh
Jackson Armistead, Army West Point
Jimin Jung, Army West Point
Charlie Spencer, Navy
Men's Tennis All-League Second Team *
Sean Jaeger, Lehigh
Ricky Espaillat, Lafayette
Matt Carlson, Holy Cross
Liam Kilmer, Bucknell
Petter Hagen, Loyola Maryland
Alon Ton, Army West Point
JJ Etterbeek, Navy
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