Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
5/18/2019 9:37:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Blue Raiders claim three postseason ITA awards
2019 ITA Division I Regional Award Winners
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Success in 2018-19 on the court and in the community did not go unnoticed by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, as Middle Tennessee men's tennis was honored with three postseason awards, the ITA announced Saturday.
After leading his team to its first Conference USA championship, head coach Jimmy Borendame was named the ITA Ohio Valley Region Coach of the Year. This honor is the first of his career, and it comes 11 days after earning the title of C-USA Coach of the Year for the first time. These individual accolades are added to back-to-back Sun Belt Coach of the Year honors in 2011 and 2012.
"I really appreciate all the coaches voting for me for this, but the credit goes to the entire coaching staff and the guys on the team," Borendame said. "Our great administration and support staff did a ton to help us achieve what we did this season, and I'm looking forward to building on it next year."
In just his second season as an assistant coach, Sebastian Rey was named the Ohio Valley Region's top assistant. Prior to joining head coach Jimmy Borendame's staff before the 2017-18 season, Rey enjoyed an illustrious playing career at Tulane, where he helped the Green Wave reach a national ranking as high as No. 30.
"Sebastian has done a great job learning fast, and he's really complimented me and my coaching style extremely well," Borendame added. "He has a bright future in coaching tennis, and I'm looking forward to seeing him develop as a coach and help our team out more."
Rey helped the Raiders to a record of 22-5 in his first season on the program's coaching staff, ending the year with a national ranking of No. 43 - the best final ranking for the Blue Raiders in the Borendame era. Borendame, Rey and the Raiders reloaded in 2019 to win the program's first C-USA championship.
"It's a great honor in my young coaching career to have this opportunity at MTSU learning from Jimmy," Rey said. "The boys have worked so hard, and it's not just my award - it's a team award. It's been a true honor to work with Jimmy and the guys."
In addition to his coaching duties, Rey graduated from MTSU with a master's degree in Leisure and Sport Management in May.
Additionally, the Blue Raiders claimed the Ohio Valley Region Community Service Award for the third consecutive year. Community service work for the Blue Raiders in 2018-19 included reading to children in local elementary schools, teaching tennis in local PE classes, hosting Murfreesboro City Schools for a free clinic, and partnering with Buddy Up and the Boys and Girls Club for free clinics.
"I think the community service award adds an exclamation point to this season," Borendame said. "We make giving back to the community one of our top priorities, and it has resulted in a great home court advantage at our matches. A lot of credit goes to the guys for stepping up and putting in these community service hours for our fanbase."
Follow the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_MensTennis), Instagram (@mt_menstennis) and Facebook (Middle Tennessee Blue Raider Men's Tennis - MTSU) as they prepare for another C-USA title run in 2019-20.
