The 2011-12 William Jewell College Men's and Women's Tennis Awards Banquet was held May 9 at the Yates-Gill College Union on the Jewell campus in Liberty, Mo. 

On the women's side, sophomore Paula Peters was named the Allison Cobb Most Valuable Player as voted on by her teammates. Peters led the team in singles wins with 18 and led the team in doubles wins with 18 while occupying the No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles positions. 

First-year player Katy Lehenbauer was honored by her teammates for Newcomer of the Year.  Lehenbauer finished the season with 12 singles wins, playing in the No. 5 singles slot.  She has been ranked nationally in doubles play this season and along with partner Paula Peters formed one of the best doubles combinations in the region.  She became only the third player in program history to qualify for the fall ITA National Tournament as a first-year player.   

Sophomore Kristen Stivers earned the Hardest Worker award by her teammates.  Stivers  has spent countless hours rehabbing from a wrist injury that occurred last season and was able to produce a 10-5 mark in singles play at No. 3 singles and 6-3 at No. 3 doubles. 

Junior Carli Bisesi was voted by her teammates as the Ann Lewis Most Improved Award. Bisesi shot up two spots to occupy the No. 2 singles position this spring and finished the season tied for third in singles wins with 13.         

Junior Jaimie Baker was named the Brittany Goldschmidt Women's Tennis Sportsmanship winner for the season.  Baker was a valued player in the No. 5 and No. 6 singles spots this spring and displayed a positive attitude throughout the season.  Baker went 11-3 in singles play and constantly displays a great deal of respect toward coaches, teammates and opponents.
 
On the men's side, first-year player Will Gross was awarded The Chad Thomason Men's Tennis Hardest Worker award.  Gross, worked countless hours on the court and in practice to improve his game and was spent a lot of hours outside of practice working on his game as well.  

Sophomore Bryan Thomas was named The Jon Curtis Most Improved for the second consecutive season.  The Most Improved Award, named in honor of Jon Curtis by his teammate Brian Carney, is an award that embodies what college athletics is all about. When given an opportunity, a person with strong work ethic and dedication will use that opportunity to master the finer aspects of the game. In doing so, that individual can inspire others to improve. “Jon not only worked hard every day to get better, he made everyone around him a more complete player,” stated Carney. “In addition, his spirit strengthened our team morale and added enthusiasm to our practices.”   Thomas stepped up to play No. 2 singles this season and was a part of Jewell's number one doubles team this season as well.  Thomas finished the year 12-8 in singles play and 13-8 in doubles.   

First-year player Jimmy Hunter was awarded the Brian Carney Best Sportsmanship award on the men's team.   The award is named after Brian Carney who was a two-time NAIA National Tournament Participant, NAIA Scholar-Athlete, All-District, ITA National Championship Participant, and All-Conference selection while playing number one singles, number two singles, and number one doubles for Jewell from 1992-96. Carney sponsored this award because it encompasses the real life lessons learned from playing college athletics—upholding the highest ethical standards, practicing humility, working with team members/colleagues toward a common goal, and treating others of similar or different backgrounds with respect.  “Jimmy's play this season certainly lives up the standards of why Brian sponsored this award,” said Worstell.  “Jimmy's attitude on the court is second to none and look forward to him growing even more as a player this coming season.”  Hunter finished the season with a singles mark of 11-7 while playing No. 6 singles and 11-10 at the No. 3 doubles spot. 

First-year player Eric Dailey was voted as the Newcomer of the Year on the men's side.  Dailey finished the season 13-6 while occupying the No. 5 singles spot for Jewell.  Dailey's 13 singles wins tied for the team lead. 

Sophomore Shane Giannetti was named the Charles Morris Men's Tennis Most Valuable Player.   The award was sponsored by Brian Carney to honor Coach Morris who was a former men's tennis coach at Jewell and is a member of the NAIA Hall of Fame.  “Coach Morris truly demonstrated leadership and personified excellence through his motto FF-RC-Again (Fight Fiercely, Respect the Conditions, and always come back to play Again the next day),” said Carney.    “He will be remembered by all of his former players as a true MVP.”   Giannetti tied for second on the team in wins with 13 at the No. 1 singles position and finished with 13 wins at No. 1 doubles.    Giannetti was also ranked 48th in singles in NCAA Division II this season. 

“Both teams had outstanding seasons and I could not be more proud” said Worstell. “I am honored to be able to coach such an outstanding group of student-athletes.  I am excited for the potential of both teams as we enter our second season in the Great Lakes Valley Conference of the NCAA Division II.”