TEMPLE, Ariz. (May 15, 2024) – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is pleased to announce the four finalists for the ITA Ann Lebedeff Leadership Award as endowed by Billie Jean King. This year's four finalists, selected for this prestigious award based on their distinguished efforts both on and off the courts, are: Esther Adehina (Tennessee), Eryn Cayetano (USC), Alisha Hussain (ECU), and Andy Mackler (Denison).

Starting tennis at the young age of seven, Mackler has experienced the ebb and flow of emotions tennis has to offer, and these lessons have helped shape him into the man he is today. While at Denison, Mackler has continued to learn much about himself and through his time in college has learned how to better deal with wins and losses, fighting through pain, and taking on new challenges. From these life lessons learned through tennis, Mackler has always tried to lead by example, whether it is mentoring other players on his team or helping those around him in the community. Recently, Mackler helped organize the "De-Stress Tennis Fest" which brought in over 200 campus members for a day full of fun and community. Additionally, Mackler has spent time abroad in Kenya working on a global health project where he was able to give back to those in need and continue his studies in Global Health. This season, Mackler has helped lead Denison to a 21-4 overall record and a berth into the Elite Eight of the 2024 NCAA Division III Team Championships.

Mackler is a three-time All-North Coast Athletic Conference selection in both singles (second-team: '23, '23; third-team: '22) and in doubles (second-team: '22, '24; third-team: '23). With a 160-37 career record between both singles and doubles, Mackler is Denison's all-time winningest player, a mark he reached during Denison's 9-0 win at Wittenberg on April 6, 2024. He has also posted career records of 74-17 in singles and 84-20 in doubles, both of which are program records for career wins. As a senior, Mackler is 27-3 in singles and 33-2 in doubles while in dual matches, he is 17-3 in singles (flights 3-6) and 24-0 in doubles (flights 2-3). With his doubles win vs. Wittenberg in the NCAC quarterfinals, Mackler set Denison's single-season record for doubles wins. Then against Kenyon in the NCAC Tournament Championship, he set the program record for combined wins in one season with 57. Mackler has helped his team advance to the NCAA Tournament in all four years and is a two-time team captain.

Now in its seventh year, the ITA Ann Lebedeff Leadership Award, as endowed by Billie Jean King, was created to honor a recent college graduate who played college tennis, demonstrated excellence in all aspects of being a student-athlete, was a leader on his or her team, and was an influential contributor on his or her college campus and community.

The recipient of the award will have demonstrated grit (i.e. passion and perseverance towards long-term goals), a commitment to social justice and equality, and will have pushed others to be leaders in addition to demonstrating his or her own leadership.

Previous winners of this prestigious award include: Nathan Turtledove (St. Lawrence, 2023), Caroline Vincent (Army, 2022), Victoria Flores (Georgia Tech, 2021), Daniel Park (Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 2020), Andrew "Drew" Atkins (Duquesne, 2019), and Nithya Kanagasegar (Case Western Reserve, 2018).

Once determined, the winner will be awarded a post-graduate scholarship, while a $1,000 donation will be made to the award winner's college tennis program from the ITA.
 
ITA Release
ITA Ann Lebedeff Leadership Award