WASHINGTON, D.C. - Four members of the Howard University tennis team were named All-Academic Scholar-Athletes by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), the governing body of collegiate tennis. Neilabh Avasthi (men's tennis), Amato Nocera (men's tennis), Whitney Ambush (women's tennis) and Courtney Dorsey (women's tennis) received the honor based on their work on the court and in the classroom.

"This is the 12th consecutive year we have qualified student-athletes for this honor," said Larry Strickland, head tennis coach at Howard University. "It has always been our goal for team members to succeed in the classroom as well as on the courts."

In order to receive the ITA Scholar-Athlete award, student-athletes were required to achieve at least a 3.5 grade point average (4.0 scale) during the 2007-08 academic year. They also had to be letterwinners on their respective teams and had to attend their current colleges or universities for at least one full academic year by the end of the season.

Avasthi and Dorsey graduated this past spring. Nocera, Avasthi's doubles partner last year, is one of the top returners for the Bison this year. Ambush, a rising senior, picked up five individual wins for HU last season, including a 6-0, 6-2 non-conference win over James Madison.

The men's squad gets its season underway this weekend at the Virginia State Invitational while the women are off for a few more weeks, returning to action on Sept. 19-21 at the Georgetown Invitational.