Elise named 2011 Mignon Borleske Winner as top Student Athlete

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Hi everyone,

While our season was still going I didn't want to start looking back because we were focused on the tasks at hand, but now that we are done and finals are starting, I think I should share a few things about Elise as her Whitman tennis career comes to a close.  One of our programs most successful players ever, Elise won over 110 matches on her way to 4 first team All-NWC awards, twice being named an ITA/NCAA doubles All-American, once a singles All-American, a 5 time NWC student athlete of the week, several time Whittie of the Week as voted by her teammates as well as being voted NWC Sportswoman of the year for women's tennis as a senior.

This on court success, combined with everything she has done for the team, the campus, and our community has earned her this year's Mignon Borleske award.  At Whitman, the Mignon Borleske and Borleske awards are given to the senior student athlete who exemplifies the ideal student athlete at Whitman.  This means success in competition, leadership, scholarship and contributions to their community.

Along with Elise's tennis, she has grown into a mature and well rounded leader who sets an outstanding example for her teammates, encourages them with passion and understanding and mentors them is a way that is both compassionate and holds them accountable.  It has been a wonderful process to see these attributes develop in Elise over the past few years.  She's always had a huge heart, an immense amount of passion for Whitman tennis and a love of fun that is contagious; and each year she became more comfortable using these talents to help create a team environment that I am so proud to be a part of.  This year, our team returned 4 players from last year and each one of them absolutely was instrumental in raising our level of communication, teamwork, and competitiveness and Elise was so often at the forefront of these things.

Away from the team she has been involved in more things at Whitman than I can usually remember.  I use her as an example with recruits of what is possible in DIII tennis, though I am always careful to tell them that very few people can pull off so much activity while maintaining and improving their academics and tennis.  Elise has been involved in the student newspaper, radio, club ultimate frisbee, outdoor program leadership, volunteering and working as a coach, taking extra courses almost every semester, doing summer academic research and professional presentations and when she took a fall off to travel, instead of studying abroad she took a leave of absence to volunteer at an orphanage in Mexico.

The competition was tough, as so many Whitties are just flat out amazing people and this year was no exception with her fellow nominees all being incredibly deserving with their athletic scholastic and leadership qualities, but having won this award gives me a chance to share just how special Elise is to our program, how much we will miss her as we wish her the best upon graduation and how her legacy will no doubt carry our team forward for years to come.

Thanks Twitch.
John