For the second year in a row, Cerritos College men's tennis player Nathan Eshmade (Kings Baptist, Australia HS) has been recognized by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). Eshmade, the top-seeded singles and doubles player at the CCCAA State Championships this season, was named the ITA Player of the Year. As a freshman, he was selected the ITA Region I Rookie of the Year.
Undefeated this season in singles (22-0), Eshmade reached the USTA/ITA National Small College Championships in singles after winning the Southern California USTA/ITA championship in both singles and doubles play. Heading into the state championships, Eshmade, who signed a scholarship with UC Santa Barbara, has posted a 27-2 record in singles action and is 33-9 in doubles play.
Also getting recognized by the ITA was Jony Chai (pictured), who was named the ITA Assistant Coach of the Year. A former Falcon player, Chai helped lead the Cerritos men to an 18-6 record and the South Coast Conference championship, one year after the team posted a 9-11 record. Chai also works with the women's team and helped lead them to a 15-6 season record and were in contention for second place in the conference, one of the toughest in the state.