University of North Carolina Athletics
Two Tar Heels Earn Academic All-America Honors
August 9, 2021 | Men's Lacrosse, Women's Tennis, Academics
Two Tar Heels have earned Academic All-America honors, recognizing outstanding academic and athletic performance during the 2020-21 school year. Sara Daavettila from women's tennis and Chris Gray from men's lacrosse both earned the recognition, which is awarded by the Collegiate Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) .
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Both were part of the Academic All-America at-large teams, which cover the sports of beach volleyball, bowling, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, rowing, skiing, swimming/diving, tennis, men's volleyball, water polo and wrestling. Gray was named to the men's second team and Daavettila to the women's third team and
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They join two members of the women's soccer team – Brianna Pinto and Rachel Jones – as Tar Heels earning Academic All-America honors during the 2020-21 school year.
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Gray is the first UNC men's lacrosse player to earn Academic All-America recognition since 1996, when Rob Tobin was a third-team selection. Daavettila is the first women's tennis player honored since Hayley Carter was a first-team selection in 2017.
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Daavettila was one of nine tennis players among 45 members of the women's first, second and third teams and the only one from an Atlantic Coast Conference program. A total of seven ACC student-athletes were named to the women's teams.
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Gray was one of six lacrosse players on the 47-member men's list and the only honoree from an ACC men's lacrosse program. A total of six ACC student-athletes were named to the men's teams, with fencing, swimming, tennis and wrestling also represented.
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To see the full list for both the men's and women's teams, click here. Â
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Daavettila, a communication studies major from Williamston, Mich., was the recipient of the 2021 Honda Sport Award for women's tennis. She ranks second in program history with 149 career singles victories and the only player in program history – and just the fourth from an ACC program – to reach the NCAA Singles Quarterfinals on three occasions. She was the 2021 ACC Player of the Year and a seven-time ITA All-America selection while helping UNC to four ACC Championships.
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A member of three ITA National Team Indoor Championships and the 2019 ITA Fall National Championship singles titlist, Daavettila holds the distinction of being the only player to receive the ITA Indoor Tournament Most Outstanding Player on more than one occasion.
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Gray, a management & society major from Wading River, N.Y., was honored as the Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year and the ACC Men's Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year. A consensus first-team All-America selection and a top-five finalist for the Tewaaraton Award as player of the year, he is the first Tar Heel to be named USILA Lt. Col. J.I. (Jack) Turnbull Outstanding Attackman of the Year. He set a program record for points in a season with 91, breaking a mark that had stood since 1973, and helped lead UNC to a share of the ACC Championship and to Championship Weekend for the first time since 2016.
An ACC Postgraduate Scholarship recipient, he will begin working toward his MBA at UNC's Kenan-Flagler Business School this fall.
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Both were part of the Academic All-America at-large teams, which cover the sports of beach volleyball, bowling, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, rowing, skiing, swimming/diving, tennis, men's volleyball, water polo and wrestling. Gray was named to the men's second team and Daavettila to the women's third team and
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They join two members of the women's soccer team – Brianna Pinto and Rachel Jones – as Tar Heels earning Academic All-America honors during the 2020-21 school year.
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Gray is the first UNC men's lacrosse player to earn Academic All-America recognition since 1996, when Rob Tobin was a third-team selection. Daavettila is the first women's tennis player honored since Hayley Carter was a first-team selection in 2017.
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Daavettila was one of nine tennis players among 45 members of the women's first, second and third teams and the only one from an Atlantic Coast Conference program. A total of seven ACC student-athletes were named to the women's teams.
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Gray was one of six lacrosse players on the 47-member men's list and the only honoree from an ACC men's lacrosse program. A total of six ACC student-athletes were named to the men's teams, with fencing, swimming, tennis and wrestling also represented.
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To see the full list for both the men's and women's teams, click here. Â
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Daavettila, a communication studies major from Williamston, Mich., was the recipient of the 2021 Honda Sport Award for women's tennis. She ranks second in program history with 149 career singles victories and the only player in program history – and just the fourth from an ACC program – to reach the NCAA Singles Quarterfinals on three occasions. She was the 2021 ACC Player of the Year and a seven-time ITA All-America selection while helping UNC to four ACC Championships.
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A member of three ITA National Team Indoor Championships and the 2019 ITA Fall National Championship singles titlist, Daavettila holds the distinction of being the only player to receive the ITA Indoor Tournament Most Outstanding Player on more than one occasion.
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Gray, a management & society major from Wading River, N.Y., was honored as the Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year and the ACC Men's Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year. A consensus first-team All-America selection and a top-five finalist for the Tewaaraton Award as player of the year, he is the first Tar Heel to be named USILA Lt. Col. J.I. (Jack) Turnbull Outstanding Attackman of the Year. He set a program record for points in a season with 91, breaking a mark that had stood since 1973, and helped lead UNC to a share of the ACC Championship and to Championship Weekend for the first time since 2016.
An ACC Postgraduate Scholarship recipient, he will begin working toward his MBA at UNC's Kenan-Flagler Business School this fall.
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Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
Attackman
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