Cambridge, Mass. (July 21) -- The MIT women's tennis team has earned the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Community Service Award for their community service work over the 2020-21 academic year.
 
"I'm very proud of the team for taking the time to serve our community in such a challenging time," said head coach Carol Matsuzaki. "Special shout out to first-year Irene Huang for organizing the activities and keeping us on track."
 
Throughout the academic year, the women's tennis program took the lead in the department and held four anti-racism gatherings for friends of MIT women's tennis, MIT DAPER staff and MIT community members. During these sessions, the group had open discussions on anti-racism topics, which helped move the needle in a positive direction and create further awareness and education.
 
The team was also extremely active in the DAPER Community Service Cup, which was a competition where the varsity teams competed against each other in doing community service activities. Women's tennis captured both the fall and spring competitions as the team engaged in programs that included writing cards for children in hospitals, raising funds and bringing food to food banks, fundraising for Camp Kesem and Random Acts of Kindness in the community.
 
The MIT women's tennis program has captured 10 NEWMAC Championships and advanced to nine NCAA Tournaments as the team has won 58 straight NEWMAC regular-season matches. The Engineers have also advanced to three NCAA Elite Eights, including in back-to-back seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19.
 
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