Simmons Tennis athletes Katy Hallinan (Lakeville, Mass.) and Athena Lynch (Andover, Mass.) received 2009 Scholar-Athlete honors from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). Among the Division III Women to receive the Scholar-Athlete award, Hallinan and Lynch were the only Great Northeast Athletic Conference athletes to earn the honors.

The ITA awards Scholar-Athlete status to collegiate tennis players who are varsity letter winners, have a grade point average of at least 3.50 (on a 4.00 scale) for the current academic year, and have been enrolled at their present school for at least 2 semesters.

Hallinan, a rising junior, received the honor as a freshman in 2008, and now for the 2009 academic year with a 2008-09 GPA of 3.80. She was undefeated in GNAC singles matches for fall 2008, amassing a GNAC record of 6-0, and an overall record of 10-5.

Lynch, a rising sophomore, is hot on Hallinan's trail after receiving the 2009 honor for her freshman year academic efforts with a 3.543 GPA. Lynch was also undefeated for singles play in the GNAC, going 3-0 in the conference. Lynch also teamed up with rising senior Jordan Borash (Marblehead, Mass.) to dominate the GNAC doubles with a 12-0 conference record, 12-3 overall.

Hallinan, Lynch and the Sharks begin a new fall season in 2009 when they travel to Clark on Thursday, September 3 at 5:00 PM.