Title image via Jackson State Athletics
Courtesy of Jackson State Athletics
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) released the 2024 Division I Men’s and Women’s ITA Scholar-Athletes and All-Academic Teams this week, and Jackson State was one of two schools in the conference to earn recognition for both.
The Jackson State women earned the All-Academic Team Award while having a pair of student-athletes named Scholar-Athletes for 2024 including Isabela Benavides and Chiara Desia. The men also earned the All-Academic Team Award with three student-athletes named Scholar-Athletes including Alejandro Pinilla, Ching Chang Chiu, and Gokalp Ayar.
In 2024, 1,573 Division I women’s student-athletes were named an ITA Scholar-Athlete, and 255 women’s tennis programs were awarded the All-Academic Team distinction. On the men’s side, 1,059 Division I student-athletes were named an ITA Scholar-Athlete, and 176 programs were awarded the All-Academic Team distinction.
To be named an ITA Scholar-Athlete, the student-athlete must have a grade point average of 3.5 for the current academic year and be listed on the institutional eligibility form. A team must have a grade point average of 3.2 or above, all student-athletes must be included on the eligibility form, and all varsity letter winners should be factored into the cumulative GPA for the academic year to be considered for the Team Academic Award.
