The University of Mississippi Athletics
Alexa Bortles Earns ITA Southern Region Arthur Ashe Award
5/18/2020 | Women's Tennis
Bortles wins the award for the eighth time in program history
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Despite the shortened spring season due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) has recognized its regional award winners, including Ole Miss Women's Tennis senior Alexa Bortles for the Southern Region's Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award.
Bortles is now in consideration for the national award, announced Monday, May 25 in a special virtual awards ceremony that can be found on the ITA's Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube platforms.
Bortles is the first Rebel to earn the regional title since Mai El Kamash in 2016 and the seventh all-time. (Marie-Laure Bougnol won the award in back-to-back seasons, making Bortles' honor the eighth time for the program overall.)
"It is a great honor for Alexa to win an award named after such an amazing tennis player and human being in Arthur Ashe," head coach Mark Beyers said of the honor. "This award is about sportsmanship and leadership, two traits that Alexa exemplifies as much as anyone I have coached in my career."
The ITA Arthur Ashe Jr. Leadership and Sportsmanship Award dates back to 1982 and is presented to the men's and women's student-athletes who exhibit outstanding sportsmanship and leadership as well as scholastic, extracurricular, and tennis achievements.
Bortles, an Alpharetta, Ga., product and 2018 All-American, was ranked as high as No. 17 in the country with doubles partner, junior Sabina Machalova. The duo won five of their last six matches, including a pair of Top 25 ranked wins in SEC play.
In singles, she registered victories in six of her final seven contests, including five in a row, and was perfect against ranked opposition, including two wins in SEC play. She clinched the match for Ole Miss over Texas Tech in thrilling fashion, and finished the spring on a 7-3 clip in singles and 8-3 in doubles.
An ITA Scholar Athlete, Bortles is also a member of the SEC and Chancellor's Honor Rolls and majored in integrated marketing communications.
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For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis. Also follow Coach Beyers on Twitter, @MarkBeyers.
Bortles is now in consideration for the national award, announced Monday, May 25 in a special virtual awards ceremony that can be found on the ITA's Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube platforms.
Bortles is the first Rebel to earn the regional title since Mai El Kamash in 2016 and the seventh all-time. (Marie-Laure Bougnol won the award in back-to-back seasons, making Bortles' honor the eighth time for the program overall.)
"It is a great honor for Alexa to win an award named after such an amazing tennis player and human being in Arthur Ashe," head coach Mark Beyers said of the honor. "This award is about sportsmanship and leadership, two traits that Alexa exemplifies as much as anyone I have coached in my career."
The ITA Arthur Ashe Jr. Leadership and Sportsmanship Award dates back to 1982 and is presented to the men's and women's student-athletes who exhibit outstanding sportsmanship and leadership as well as scholastic, extracurricular, and tennis achievements.
Bortles, an Alpharetta, Ga., product and 2018 All-American, was ranked as high as No. 17 in the country with doubles partner, junior Sabina Machalova. The duo won five of their last six matches, including a pair of Top 25 ranked wins in SEC play.
In singles, she registered victories in six of her final seven contests, including five in a row, and was perfect against ranked opposition, including two wins in SEC play. She clinched the match for Ole Miss over Texas Tech in thrilling fashion, and finished the spring on a 7-3 clip in singles and 8-3 in doubles.
An ITA Scholar Athlete, Bortles is also a member of the SEC and Chancellor's Honor Rolls and majored in integrated marketing communications.
_____________________________________________________________
For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis. Also follow Coach Beyers on Twitter, @MarkBeyers.
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/ Women's Tennis
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