Six Wheaton tennis players corral ITA Scholar-Athlete honors, women's team garners academic award for second straight year

August 17, 2006

NORTON, MA- Former Wheaton College men's tennis player Brian Spielman (Madbury, NH/Oyster River) and five members of the institution's women's team earned Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Scholar-Athlete laurels. The Lyons were one of 54 Division III women's squads that nabbed ITA All-Academic Team honors after also being recognized in 2005.

Spielman, who graduated in May with a 3.59 grade point average after studying political science, corralled ITA Scholar-Athlete honors for the fourth straight year. The two-time New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Academic All-Conference qualifier was one of only six NEWMAC athletes among the 208 Division III ITA Scholar-Athletes hailing from men's teams.

On the women's side, juniors Eden Gudonis (Manchester, MA/Governor Dummer Academy), Jessica Otto (Atlantic, IA/Atlantic) and Jamie Weiss (Chicago, IL/Francis W. Parker School) and sophomores Briana Jackson (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) and Maya Milic-Strkalj (Philadelphia, PA/Friends' Central School) were among 325 Division III women to receive accolades.

Gudonis holds a 3.21 GPA while studying toward a psychology degree, Otto has a 3.22 GPA as a political science major, and Weiss maintains a 3.20 GPA and is working on a degree in philosophy. A chemistry major, Jackson has a 3.93 GPA, while Milic-Strkalj is a double major in philosophy and sociology with a 3.87 GPA. Jackson and Milic-Strkalj also earned ITA Scholar-Athlete honors in 2004.

Wheaton's women's team posted a 3.34 grade point average for fall 2005 and a 3.36 GPA in spring 2006. To be eligible for the award, a program must achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.20 or above for one full academic year. The GPAs of all student-athletes who competed in at least one varsity match are averaged into the team's GPA for the academic year.

In order to earn ITA Scholar-Athlete status a player must be a varsity letterwinner, have a GPA of at least 3.50 for the current academic year and have been enrolled at his or her present school for at least two semesters.

During her 26th year at Wheaton, head coach Lynn Miller led the Lyon men to an 11-6 mark in 2006 and the NEWMAC Tournament championship match, while the women posted a 9-6 record.

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