TEMPE, Ariz. – On Monday, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association announced its national award winners.
Fiona Crawley has been named the ITA National Player of the Year, Anika Yarlagadda won the 2023 ITA Most Improved Senior Award and North Carolina head coach Brian Kalbas has been named the 2023 Wilson/ITA Coach of the Year.
In 2022-23, Crawley achieved what may have been the most successful collegiate season in women’s tennis. Over the course of the year, Crawley won two grand slam singles events in the fall, she was ranked the No. 1 singles player in the country for over 10 weeks in the spring, she helped lead the Tar Heels to its seventh ITA Indoor National Championship, she went undefeated in NCAA team play to help North Carolina win its first NCAA Team title, She won the NCAA Doubles championship with Carson Tanguilig, Crawley was named ACC Player of the Year and also earned the sportsmanship award at the ITA Indoor Nationals.
Yarlagadda, who focused solely on singles play during the spring season, stepped up when needed for the Tar Heels. Yarlagadda ended the season ranked No. 41 in singles play. She finished the year with an 18-1 record in dual matches and went a perfect 9-0 in ACC play in 2023. She finished the season with an impressive 30-7 record and now boasts an 88-22 overall record at North Carolina.
Kalbas, a three-time Wilson/ITA Coach of the Year recipient, led the North Carolina women’s tennis program to its seventh ITA Indoor National Championship and its first-ever NCAA National Championship in 2023. Kalbas is one of four Division I women’s coaches to achieve 700 victories (746) and owns a .800 career winning percentage, Kalbas also touts the highest winning percentage in the history of women’s tennis in the ACC (.839).
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