The Hope College women’s tennis team reeled in team and individual academic awards from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association for the 2015-16 school year.
Coach Adam Ford’s Flying Dutch claimed the ITA All-Academic Team award for the fifth consecutive season after recording a 3.66 grade point average.
A total of eight Hope student-athletes achieved ITA Scholar-Athlete status for the second consecutive season: Nancy Benda, Anna Garcia, Marie Holaway, Natalie Rahrig, Erin LaBarge, Taylor LaBarge, Catherine Wingrove and Amanda Susnak.
“I couldn’t be more proud of these players and students,” Ford said. “They truly are the definition of student-athletes. Their focus and discipline shows in their performance in the classroom and on the court. These awards are well deserved.”
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 varsity letter winners should be factored into the cumulative team GPA for the current academic year (including fall 2015 and spring 2016).
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 2 semesters (including freshman through senior year).
The Flying Dutch recorded a 3.66 GPA last school year. Earlier this summer, they earned Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Team GPA Award.
On the court, Hope repeated as MIAA regular-season and tournament champions and competed in the NCAA Division III Tournament during the 2015-16 school year. The Flying Dutch finished with a 19-5 overall record last spring.