May 11, 2005

Courtesy ITA

SKILLMAN, N.J. - The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) has announced its national award winners in NCAA Division II men's and women's tennis for the 2004-05 season. The awards were presented last night during a ceremony at the NCAA Championship banquet in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

West Florida's Racine is the Wilson/ITA National Men's Coach of the Year for the second time in three years. Racine also won this award in 2003 (and was Wilson/ITA Women's C.O.Y. in 2002). His West Florida squad has been ranked No. 1 in the ITA Rankings the entire season and will be looking to capture their second straight NCAA championship this week. West Florida (26-2) is facing Ferris State in today's round of 16 of the NCAA tournament. The Wilson/ITA National Women's Coach of the Year will be announced later this week.

The 2005 ITA national award winners for NCAA Division II tennis are as follows:

Men

Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year - Derrick Racine, West Florida
ITA National Senior Player of the Year - Dante Cipulli, Southwest Baptist (Mo.)

ITA National Rookie of the Year - Eduardo Pereira, North Florida

ITA National Player to Watch - Matias Oddone, Drury (Mo.)
ITA/Arthur Ashe Award for Leadership & Sportsmanship - Josh Berman, Florida Southern

Women
ITA National Senior Player of the Year - Adrienn Hegedus, BYU-Hawaii
ITA National Rookie of the Year - Julia Gandia, Clayton (Ga.) College & State

ITA National Player to Watch - Dziyana Nazaruk, Armstrong Atlantic (Ga.) State
ITA/Arthur Ashe Award for Leadership & Sportsmanship - Jessica Broadus, Indianapolis

Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year - to be announced on a later date

Southwest Baptist's Cipulli and BYU-Hawaii's Hegedus are the ITA National Senior Players of the Year after finishing the regular season at No. 1 and 2 in the national singles rankings, respectively. Cipulli is 44-2 this season and captured the singles title at the ITA National Small College Championships in October. He is also No. 10 in the ITA doubles rankings. Hegedus is 26-1 this season in singles (her lone loss coming to top-ranked teammate Jing Jing Liu) and is ranked No. 1 in doubles with Liu (with a 25-0 record). BYU-Hawaii has never lost a dual match during her career. The Seasiders current 127-match win streak started her freshman season in 2001-02. A three-time ITA All-American, Hegedus also has an amazing 115-2 record in singles play during her career.

North Florida's Pereira and Clayton College & State's Gandia are this year's ITA National Rookies of the Year. Pereira is No. 10 in the latest national men's singles rankings and last month he became the first men's player in Peach Belt Conference history to be selected as Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year. Today he helped UNF beat Southwest Baptist to advance to tomorrow's NCAA quarterfinals. Gandia is 16-2 this season and ranked No. 6 in singles and No. 3 in doubles.

Drury's Oddone and Armstrong Atlantic State's Nazaruk were named ITA National Players to Watch. The ITA Player to Watch Award goes to a player who has an outstanding season and is expected to perform at a high level the rest of his or her career. AASU's Nazaruk is No. 17 in the women's singles rankings and has helped her team to a No. 2 ranking this entire season. She is 24-5 on the year in singles and has been ranked as high as No. 6. Drury's Oddone is ranked No. 6 in singles and No. 15 in doubles. He is 18-3 in singles so far this season.

Florida Southern's Berman and Indianapolis' Broadus are this year's recipients of the ITA/Arthur Ashe Award for Leadership and Sportsmanship. This award goes to a player who has exhibited outstanding sportsmanship and leadership as well as scholastic, extracurricular and tennis achievements. Berman, a senior captain from London, Ontario, has excelled in the classroom and devoted time to teaching children tennis, Habitat for Humanity and the Lakeland (Fla.) Volunteers in Medicine Clinic. Broadus helped Indianapolis to the program's first ever NCAA tournament victory last week and is the second straight Indy player to receive this award, joining 2004 recipient Grace Wilhoite. A senior from North Vernon, Ind., she has been named an ITA Scholar Athlete and to the Great Lakes Valley All Academic Team.

The rounds of 16 through the finals for the 2005 NCAA Division II Men's and Women's Tennis Championships are taking place in Altamonte Springs, Fla., starting today.