The Gustavus women’s tennis team was strongly represented by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) as a part of its post-season academic awards. The 2011 Gusties earned ITA Team Academic honors,while nine individuals took home Scholar-Athlete distinction.
Gustavus tennis players receiving Scholar-Athlete recognition included Bailey Abeyesekera (Fy., Undeclared), Heather Annis (So., Health Fitness), Julie Bardenwerper (Sr., Biology), Megan Born (Jr., Undeclared), Maria Bryan (So., Biology), Alex Erickson (Jr., Biology), Sam Frank (Sr., Biology), Emily Roediger (Jr., Environmental Studies and Biology), and Mallory Shellum (So., Management).
Head Coach Jon Carlson’s squad recorded a team GPA of 3.55 this season. The Gusties won their 26th straight MIAC Title last season, finishing the year 20-10 overall and 10-0 in the MIAC. St. Thomas and St. Olaf were also represented the MIAC by earning All-Academic Team honors.
Seniors Sam Frank and Julie Bardenwerper have received the award all four years of their career at Gustavus. Emily Roediger collects the honor for the third time, while Heather Annis, Maria Bryan, and Alex Erickson are all repeat award winners.
The ITA All-Academic Team award is open to any ITA program that has a cumulative team grade point average of 3.20 or above (on a 4.00 scale). All eligible student-athletes whose names appear on the NCAA/NAIA/NJCAA/CA JUCO eligibility form and have competed in one or more varsity matches must average into the GPA for the current academic year (including fall 2010 and spring 2011).
In order to earn ITA Scholar-Athlete status a player must meet the following criteria: 1.) be a varsity letter winner, 2.) have a grade point average of at least 3.50 (on a 4.00 scale) for the current academic year, and 3.) have been enrolled at their present school for at least two semesters (including freshman through senior year).