Aug. 14, 2003
WACO, Texas - Baylor tennis standout Benedikt Dorsch has been named to the 2003 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Star Team, presented by The Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy. The team will be honored on August 22 at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, N.Y.
This 20th edition of the ITA Collegiate All-Star Team includes the nation's top-ranked men's and women's tennis players at the NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and NJCAA levels, as well as champions from the 2002 ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships and 2003 NCAA Championships. This year's ITA/Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award, presented by Mont Blanc, recipients - Trevor Smith of Princeton and Kristen Stubbs of Virginia Tech - will also be honored at the event.
The ITA Collegiate All-Star Team will be treated by the ITA and The Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy to a weekend in New York, highlighted by the Aug. 22 activities at the West Side Tennis Club, site of the U.S. Open until 1977. Following a breakfast at West Side, the ITA All-Stars will participate in doubles play with guests from 9-11 a.m. Starting at noon the ITA All-Stars will then be honored at a special luncheon and presented their awards. Nick Bollettieri will be on hand for the awards ceremony. The legendary Bollettieri founded his world famous tennis academy in 1978 and has coached many of the top players including Andre Agassi, Monica Seles, Tommy Haas, Jim Courier and Anna Kournikova.
Joining Dorsch on the men's team are: Richard Barker of Rice, William Barker of Rice, Eric Butorac of Gustavus Adolphus, Amer Delic of Illinois, Sam Fletcher of Azusa Pacific, Jan Krejci of BYU-Hawaii, Scott Lipsky of Stanford, Lucas Malero of Georgia Perimeter, David Martin of Stanford, Rajeev Ram of Illinois, Bobby Reynolds of Vanderbilt and Brian Wilson of Illinois.
Dorsch, had an impressive rookie season at Baylor, becoming the first Baylor tennis player to earn double all-American honors and a national championship. Dorsch finished his sophomore season with a 49-6 record in singles, a 32-6 mark in doubles and a No. 3 national ranking. He won the ITA Indoor National Championships singles title and was runner up in the NCAA Championships in singles. Dorsch also was named Big 12 Player and Newcomer of the Year. He is the first Baylor player to be named to the ITA All-Star Team.
The ITA has selected an All-Star Team since 1984. Recent players honored include: Bea Bielik, James Blake, Bob and Mike Bryan, Laura Granville, Marissa Irvin, Alex Kim, Jeff Morrison and Brian Vahaly.
