Posted: May 24, 2013

Settles Named ITA Coach Of The Year, Fabrizio West Region Assistant Coach Of The Year

SKILLMAN, N.J. – After a season in which the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men's tennis team reached new heights, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) recognized the efforts of head coach Paul Settles as Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year and assistant coach Chris Fabrizio as West Region Assistant Coach of the Year.

The Stags finished in second place in 2013 at the NCAA Division III Men's Tennis Championships, the program's best finish since 1994. This year's squad reached No. 1 in the nation for the first time in program history after defeating Kenyon 9-0 and defending national champion Emory 8-1 on consecutive days. CMSrecorded a school record 30 wins this season. The team also won an eighth-consecutive SCIAC title this year, going undefeated against NCAA Division III competition during the regular season.

The 2013 season is the 10^th season as head coach of the Stags for Settles and during his tenure he has led the team to a 237-67 overall record. In conference matches under Settles, the Stags have been even more impressive with nine SCIAC titles and a conference record of 90-4, including eight seasons in a row without a SCIAC loss. In 2009 Settles was named West Region ITA Coach of the Year.

"Feeling like I made an impact in 13 student-athlete's lives this year is very, very satisfying – it has been a privilege to work with each of them," said Settles.

Fabrizio is in his first season as an assistant coach for the Stags and has over 25 years of experience coaching, playing and studying the game of tennis.

"There's no one more deserving of this accolade – Chris has impacted our program tremendously in a very short period of time, helping our student-athletes to get the most out of their playing experiences, and making me a better head coach."

Currently a pro at The Upland Tennis Club (Upland, CA), he previously founded the Futchko-Fabrizio International Tennis Academy which brought players from all over the world to Southern California for academic and elite tennis training. More recently, Fabrizio has directed the ToughTennis High-Intensity Tennis Training Camps, combining off-court athletic development, sports nutrition, along with on-court technical and competitive training. He has coached multiple highly ranked juniors, professional tour players and a wide range of collegiate players.

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