BERKELEY – Two days after advancing to the NCAA round of 16 in Athens, Georgia, California associate head coach Tyler Browne, senior Florian Lakat and junior Billy Griffith collected ITA regional honors for the success they've garnered in the 2016-17 season. On Monday Browne earned the ITA Northwest Regional Assistant Coach of the Year award for the third time in his career, Lakat claimed the Senior Player of the Year award and Griffith picked up the Player to Watch honor.
 
Browne, a former Golden Bear player now in his 10th season on the coaching staff, previously earned the regional assistant coach accolade in 2012 and 2015.
 
This is the first ITA Northwest Regional honor for Lakat, though he earned the ITA Southern Regional Rookie of the Year award in 2014 when he played at Mississippi State. Lakat, a senior ranked 12th in singles, brings a 19-10 record to Athens, where in addition to the team tournament he will play in the NCAA Singles Championship and, with Filip Bergevi, in the NCAA Doubles Championship. Lakat and Bergevi – doubles All-Americans in 2016 – are ranked fifth in doubles.
 
Griffith, who is ranked 81st in singles, has a team-high 26 singles wins so far this season and has an overall singles mark of 26-8. He won both his singles matches in Cal's NCAA round of 64 win against Tennessee Tech last Friday and in the round of 32 victory over Northwestern on Saturday. Griffith and senior Andre Goransson are ranked 74th in doubles.
 
The eighth-seeded Bears will play ninth-seeded North Carolina in the round of 16 on Thursday at 4 p.m. PT at the University of Georgia's Dan Magill Tennis Complex.