BEREA, OHIO --  The 2011-2012 Baldwin Wallace University women's tennis teams and foour of its student-athletes have been recognized by the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) for its academic excellence.  Both the Yellow Jacket men and wmen are among the best programs in the Ohio Athletic Conference, Central Region and in all of NCAA Division III.

The ITA All-Academic Team award is open to any ITA program that has a cumulative team grade point average of 3.20 or above (on a 4.00 scale). All eligible student-athletes whose names appear on the NCAA Division III eligibility form and have competed in one or more varsity matches must average into the GPA for the current academic year (including fall 2011 and spring 2012).

In order to earn ITA Scholar-Athlete status a player must meet the following criteria: be a varsity letter winner, have a grade point average of at least 3.50 (on a 4.00 scale) for the current academic year, and have been enrolled at their present school for at least two semesters (including freshman thorough senior year).

The Yellow Jacket women's program also is steeped in tradition.  BW has won three of the past six OAC titles, advanced to the NCAA Division III National Tournament three times during that span and have a 134-64 mark in the past eight campaigns.  Last season, the women had a 3.36 grade point average as a team. Four of its student-athletes, including graduated senior Emily Brown (Vermilion/ 3.6 GPA in accounting and finance), juniors Rebecca Mittler (Elyria Catholic/ 3.56 GPA in middle childhood education), Danielle Reuger (Ashland/ 3.8 GPA in digital media and design) and sophomore Whitney Yoder (Medina/ 3.62 GPA in psychology), were named as ITA Scholar-Athletes.

"Our women's tennis program has a rich history of excellence in the classroom and on the tennis court," said veteran Head Coach Jack Bethlenfalvy, who has a 323-213 career mark with a .602 winning percentage. "We will miss Emily next season but return Rebecca, Danielle and Whitney as solid tennis student-athletes, campus leaders and role models. We are very proud of the accomplishments of all four individuals and our entire team."

FOR MORE BW SPORTS INFORMATION, please contact Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327 and e-mail at kruple@bw.edu or Assistant SID Jeff Miller by phone at 440-826-2780 and e-mail at jefmille@bw.edu. Fans can access the latest BW athletics information at www.bw.edu/athletics and we invite you to join us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/bwathletics.