Broncos Honored on ITA All-Academic Squads
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Intercollegiate Tennis Association released its list of All-Academic Teams and individual Scholar-Athletes, with the Western Michigan men's and women's tennis teams continuing their respective long-standing traditions on the list. The Bronco women's tennis teams earned ITA All-Academic Team distinction for the 19th consecutive year while, and a combined eight individuals (six women, two men) were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
ITA All-Academic Team honors are given annually to any ITA program that has a cumulative team grade point average of 3.20 or better over the course of a given season. All eligible student-athletes whose names appear on the roster and have appeared in one or more varsity matches count towards reaching the 3.20 minimum. The Bronco women's tennis team has earned the distinction every year since it was introduced in 1996, a streak of 19 straight years as an ITA All-Academic team.
Individuals named ITA Scholar-Athletes are those that meet the following list of criteria: they must be a varsity letter winner, maintain a grade point average of at least 3.50, and have been enrolled at their present school for at least two semesters. Six Bronco women's tennis players were named to the list in 2014, more than any other program in the Mid-American Conference: graduated senior Nini Sujashvili, rising senior Caroline Aleck, and rising sophomores Meika Ashby, Tracy Kuhle, and Yuriko Ono were among those honored. Two members of the Western Michigan men's tennis team were also honored as ITA Scholar-Athletes, rising junior Ruben Greiner and rising sophomore Matt Hamilton.