CALIFORNIA (May 23) – California University of Pennsylvania head coach Pablo Montana was recently selected the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National and Regional Coach of the Year, while freshman Jutta Bornefeld (Varel, Germany/Lother-Meyer Gymnasium) and sophomore Anastassiya Zherdeva (Almaty, Kazakhstan/Gumnasia Number 60) both received individual regional awards from the ITA.

Montana earned ITA National Coach of the Year honors for the second time in his eight-year career, while he garnered ITA Atlantic Region Coach of the Year laurels for third time. He directed the Vulcans to a 24-6 overall record and their fourth-consecutive Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship this season. Montana also guided Cal U to its sixth-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, capped by the program's third-ever appearance in quarterfinal round of the tournament. Under his direction, the Vulcans mounted an impressive 10-3 mark against nationally-ranked opponents and a 16-2 record in regionally-ranked opponents during the 2009-10 campaign. Montana and head softball coach Rick Bertagnolli are the only coaches in Cal U history to be named the National Coach of the Year.

Bornefeld was selected the ITA Atlantic Region Rookie of the Year after posting a 20-2 overall singles record despite not playing during the fall campaign. The PSAC West Athlete of the Year also compiled a 20-7 mark in doubles action, while playing with seven different doubles partners. A native of Germany, Bornefeld entered the NCAA Tournament as the 22nd-ranked singles player in the country and top-ranked singles player in the region.

Zherdeva became the third Cal U player in the last five years to earn ITA Atlantic Region Player to Watch honors, joining former All-Americans Inga Chilingaryan (2006) and Helena VanEysendeyk (2007). Zherdeva ranked second on the team with 22 wins in singles play while playing at five different positions. The sophomore from Kazakhstan also tallied a 23-8 mark in doubles play, led by a team-best 14 victories with freshman Jade Pondicas (Johannesburg, South Africa / British International Distance). In two seasons with the program, Zherdeva has compiled an impressive 32-10 mark in singles play and entered the NCAA Tournament as the fifth-ranked singles player in the region.