The University of Mississippi Athletics
El Kamash, Milutinovic Earn Prestigious ITA Awards
5/9/2016 | Women's Tennis
OXFORD. Miss. - Seniors Mai El Kamash and Marija Milutinovic have been an integral part of the Ole Miss women's tennis team during their careers, and Monday both earned Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Southern Region Awards.
El Kamash received the Southern Region Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award, and Milutinovic earned the Cissie Leary Sportsmanship Award. Both are now eligible for the national awards, which will be announced at the NCAA Championships later this month.
"This is a great honor for Mai and Marija to win these prestigious awards," head coach Mark Beyers said. "Both Mai and Marija are much more than just good tennis players. They are outstanding students, teammates, leaders and great examples for our younger players."
A native of Cairo, Egypt, El Kamash is the seventh Rebel and the first since 2013 to receive the Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award. The award recognizes players who excel on and off the court during their college careers.
El Kamash has been a constant for the Rebels in the top half of the lineup the past two years. This year, she helped the Rebels to their eighth straight NCAA appearance and also earned a bid to the NCAA Doubles Championship with Arianne Hartono.
Off the courts, El Kamash is an outstanding student-athlete with a 3.84 grade point average in Civil Engineering. She is a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete, two-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll and has helped the Rebels earn the prestigious ITA All-Academic Team Award each year of her career.
A native of Stockholm, Sweden, Milutinovic becomes the fifth player from Ole Miss and first since 2011 to receive the Cissie Leary Award for Sportsmanship. The award goes to a 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.
Milutinovic clinched the Rebels win against Pac-12 Champion Stanford and has been a steady contributor for the Rebels in singles and doubles throughout her career. A managerial finance major, Milutinovic is a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete and three-time SEC Academic Honor Roll member. She is set to graduate next week.
The Rebels will face Northwestern in the first round of the NCAA Championships Friday at 9 a.m. CT in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis. Also follow Coach Beyers on Twitter, @MarkBeyers.
