Ringler Named Regional Recipient Of Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship Award

By: By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

Women's Tennis | 5/3/2018 12:31:00 PM

AMHERST, N.Y. - Gretchen Ringler (North Tonawanda, N.Y.), a senior on the Daemen College women's tennis team, has been named the NCAA Division II East Region's recipient of the Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). The official announcement of the ITA's year-end awards for NCAA Division II was made late yesterday from their headquarters in Tempe, Ariz. Ringler is one of eight regional recipients of the award, one of whom will emerge as the national recipient which will be announced at a later date.

The Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award, named for the professional tennis legend who won three Grand Slam titles, dates back to 1982. The award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding leadership and sportsmanship, as well as scholastic, extracurricular and tennis achievements.

Ringler put together a stellar four-year career for the Wildcats. She leaves as the program's second all-time leader in singles (43), doubles (41) and combined (84) victories. In addition, only former teammate Hayle Scanlan appeared in more matches than Ringler's 198 combined between singles and doubles play.

This past season was arguably the finest of her collegiate career. She established a new career-high for doubles wins with 14, the second time in her career she reached double figures and a total that ranks third in team history for a single season. She also matched her career-high with 13 singles wins, something she hadn't accomplished since her freshman campaign. She's the only player in team history to have two seasons with at least 13 wins in singles play.

In addition to her exploits on the tennis court, Ringler has been a model student. She's been a consistent presence on both the Dean's List and the East Coast Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll, as well as a two-time recipient of ITA All-Academic Team honors. She's also an active member of the Social Work Honor Society, and has volunteered for organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Buffalo Bills Foundation, Buffalo Sabres Foundation, Jericho House and Relay for Life. She's also been an intern at the Family Justice Center.

In addition to the Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award winners, the ITA also announced regional recipients of the Coach of the Year, Assistant Coast of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Player to Watch, Most Improved Senior, Senior Player of the Year and Community Service Awards. Ringler's recognition marks the second straight year that Daemen has earned a postseason honor from the ITA as both the men's and women's teams were awarded their respective ITA Community Service Awards following the 2016-17 season.

Ringler is set to graduate later this month with a degree in Social Work.

For breaking news and continuing coverage of the Daemen women's tennis team, follow @DaemenAthletics and @DaemenTennis on Twitter.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Gretchen Ringler: 5' 5"; Senior

Players Mentioned

Gretchen Ringler
: 5' 5"; Senior