Men's Tennis Earns ITA Sportsmanship Award
EUGENE, Ore. ? The Oregon men’s tennis team was honored this month with the ITA National Sportsmanship Award. The award goes to teams that have exemplified outstanding sportsmanship, character and ethical conduct in the true spirit of competition and college tennis. The winners are selected by the ITA Ethics and Infractions Committee from nominations received from all ITA member institutions (NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community Colleges).
"As coaches, we hold this honor in high regard," Oregon head coach Chris Russell said about Oregon’s approach to sportsmanship. "We are not perfect in this area, as the heat of battle can take you away from this focus. However, we do emphasize with our team that there is a certain attitude that we are trying to embrace whether we are winning or losing, and that good things can happen if you are representing (your school) in an appealing way."
In addition to the obvious reasons, sportsmanship and fair play are considered important in college tennis due to the fact that players make their own calls during a match.
As the governing body of collegiate tennis the ITA promotes both the athletic and academic achievements of the collegiate tennis community. The ITA, which was founded in 1956 and is based in Skillman, N.J., administers numerous regional and national championships, the ITA Collegiate Summer Circuit, presented by the USTA, and the ITA Rankings for men’s and women’s tennis at the NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and Junior College levels. The ITA also has a comprehensive awards program for players and coaches to honor excellence in academics, leadership and sportsmanship. The official ITA website is www.itatennis.com.
Oregon finishes out the regular season when it travels north to take on No. 22 Washington (Sat., April 17, 1:30 p.m.). The Ducks (9-9, 1-5) defeated the Huskies, 4-3, earlier this season.
