May 25, 2011
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Just over a week after receiving the regional honor, Texas A&M women's tennis player Stephanie Davidson has been named the national winner of the ITA Cissie Leary Award for Sportsmanship, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association announced.
The senior from Fair Oaks Ranch, Texas, becomes Texas A&M's first women's tennis player to be presented an ITA national award.
The ITA/Cissie Leary Award for Sportsmanship goes to a Division I women's player who displays inspiring dedication and commitment to her team, which has enhanced her team's performance and exemplified the spirit of college tennis. It dates back to 1997 and is memory of the late and widely admired Penn women's tennis coach Cissie Leary.
"This is a very meaningful award and a great honor," said A&M coach Bobby Kleinecke, who recently completed his 26th season at the helm of the Aggies. "I knew Cissie early in my career and knew the kind of special person she was and how she stood for integrity, sportsmanship and friendship.
"Stephanie also represents those special traits, and she will be a big success in life. This will be an award she will always cherish."
The award is one of several honors Davidson has received this year. The sports management major was one of four Texas A&M students to receive the prestigious Margaret Rudder Service Award, announced at the Parents' Weekend All-University Awards Ceremony last month. The Margaret Rudder Community Service Award recognizes and awards those who significantly impact their community and, as a result, are themselves impacted by their contribution.
Earlier this year, Davidson was selected to the Big 12/Chick-fil-A Winter Community of Champions. During the fall, winter and spring terms, the Big 12, in conjunction with Chick-fil-A, honors one student-athlete from each institution based on the following criteria:
• Academics: An academic standard of a 3.00 grade point average or higher must be maintained.
• Community Service: The designated student-athlete should be involved with at least one community service program. The program(s) could be a student organization on campus or within the athletics department.
• Leadership/Sportsmanship: The student-athlete should demonstrate leadership and sportsmanship on and off the field.
Davidson, a member of the Academic All-Big 12 second team, is active in Aggie Athletes Involved (AAI) and will serve as president of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) in 2011-12 after serving as vice president in 2010-11. This past fall, Davidson gave more than 100 hours serving as co-chair of 2010 AAI Aggies CAN, the largest student-athlete run food drive in the nation which resulted in the collection of a record $15,160 in addition to 3,485 pounds of canned food to benefit the Brazos Valley Food Bank.
Davidson recently completed her four-year tennis career with the fourth most doubles victories in A&M history. This past season Davidson led the Aggies (15-9) in doubles victories with a 24-12 mark to finish 97-45 in her career.
2011 ITA Women's National Award Winners:
*Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year - TBD
ITA National Assistant Coach of the Year - Sara Anundsen, University of North Carolina (Littleton, Colo.)
ITA National Senior Player of the Year - Maria Sanchez, University of Southern California (Modesto, Calif.)
ITA National Rookie of the Year - Kristie Ahn, Stanford University (Upper Saddle River, N.J.)
ITA National Player to Watch - Marta Lesniak, SMU (Wroclaw, Poland)
ITA/Arthur Ashe Jr. Award for Leadership and Sportsmanship - Amy Zhang, Rutgers University (Plano, Texas)
ITA /Cissie Leary Award for Sportsmanship - Stephanie Davidson, Texas A&M University (Fair Oaks Ranch, Texas)
*The Wilson/ITA National Coaches of the Year will be selected and announced after the completion of the 2011 NCAA Division I Team Championships.