Tonight at the NAIA Tennis Banquet in Mobile, AL, it was announced that CU Men's Tennis player Alex Tarnow won the national ITA/ Arthur Ashe Jr. Leadership and Sportsmanship Award.  Considered by many to be the most prestigious award available to a college tennis player, the Arthur Ashe Award recognizes one male and one female tennis player in each division who have exhibited outstanding sportsmanship and leadership as well as scholastic, extracurricular and tennis achievements.  Alex first won the Award for the ITA East Region so was then nominated and won the award at the national level.  As part of winning the award, Alex will travel to the US Open in New York, where he will participate in Arthur Ashe Kids Day at Ashe Stadium, as well as the National NJTL breakfast.

Says Tarnow, "I am grateful and humbled to win the Arthur Ashe Jr. Award.  Mr. Ashe was a great humanitarian and tennis champion, so to win an award in his name is a tremendous honor."

Coach Erickson on Tarnow, "Alex is a wonderful representative of our team, our school, and all of the values that we stand for at Cornerstone.  I'm thrilled that he won this award, and I know that he has done the work to be worthy of that honor.  I'm proud to be his coach."

The Intercollegiate Tennis Association is the governing body of college tennis and grants their own awards on top of the regular NAIA awards.  This is the first time in the brief history of Cornerstone tennis that a CU player has won a Regional or National ITA award.  The awards release can be found here.