TEMPE, Ariz. – The International Tennis Association announced the 2026 ITA Division I Men's Regional Award recipients on Tuesday as the Santa Clara men's tennis program was recognized with four awards out of the Northwest Region.
 
Every season the ITA recognizes coaches and student-athletes for their excellence both on the court and in their communities throughout the season in each of the 13 regions. 
 
Niall Angus was named the ITA/Dunlop Coach of the Year and Josh Page was recognized as the ITA Assistant Coach of the Year, while Alexander Watanabe Eriksson took home the ITA Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award and John Kim won the ITA Most Improved Player Award. 
 
This spring, Angus led Santa Clara to a NCAA Team Championship berth for only the second time in program history after capturing the first-ever West Coast Conference Co-Championship in the regular season to earn West Coast Conference Coach of the Year recognition. 
 
Assisted by Page, the Bronco coaching duo guided the team to an overall record of 20-5 including a 13-match win streak, the longest since at least 2001-02.  In league play, Santa Clara had identical 6-1 records with Pepperdine and San Diego to qualify for the WCC Tournament for the eighth straight season.
 
In the various final ITA rankings, Santa Clara set or was close to setting program bests.  In the National rankings, they had the second-best finish ever at No. 38.  And in the Mid-Major Team rankings, they came in at a program best No. 7 and tied a program high No. 3 in the Regional Team rankings. 
 
This is the second time Angus has been named Northwest Region ITA Coach of the Year after winning it in 2024.  It is the first recognition for Page who is in his second year with the program.
 
The Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award that Watanabe Eriksson won, is the ITA's longest-running award honoring the life and legacy of the person many would call the greatest collegiate tennis player of all time.  Playing at USC, Osuna became the only player to this day to be ranked No. 1 in the world while on a college tennis roster. 
 
The award was established in 1969 and it honors the player who demonstrates the key tenets of Osuna's game including but not limited to sportsmanship, character, academic achievements, and outstanding tennis accomplishments. 
 
Watanabe Eriksson, a two-time captain, was named All-WCC singles first team, WCC All-Academic honorable mention and CSC Academic All-District this year.  The senior from Stockholm, Sweden primarily played atop the singles lineup and finished No. 16 in the ITA Northwest Regional singles rankings. 
 
Kim saw his dual match singles win total jump from 11 to 14 this season and his WCC victories go from three to five to earn second team All-WCC singles and be named the ITA Most Improved Player Award, an annual award recognizing student-athletes who demonstrate dramatic performance leaps over the prior season.  It was his first all-conference recognition in singles and finished No. 18 in the regional singles rankings. 
 
In doubles, the Bronco senior teamed up with Luca Bluett to become the first-ever SCU men's tennis players to play in the NCAA Individual Championships.  They were ranked for 10-straight weeks in the ITA doubles national rankings, reaching a high of No. 17 and closed out the year at No. 68.  In the Northwest Regional doubles rankings, they finished No. 3 for the highest regional doubles ranking in program history.

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