HADLEY, Mass. – The New England Small College Athletic Conference announced its award recipients for the 2021 women’s tennis season.
 
In a vote by NESCAC coaches, junior Jackie Bukzin (Manorville, N.Y.) was named the NESCAC Player of the Year while Tufts sophomore Tilly Rigby (Toronto, Ontario) was selected as the Rookie of the Year. Seniors Rachel Cross (Charlottesville, Va.) of Williams and Patricia Obeid (New York, N.Y.) of Tufts share the Senior Sportsmanship Award which is given annually to the individual who best displayed a high standard of tennis coupled with the highest levels of sportsmanship. Obeid was the NESCAC Rookie of the Year and a Second Team singles honoree in 2018. Tufts head coach Kate Bayard was voted NESCAC Coach of the Year by her peers.
 
Bukzin, the 2019 NESCAC Rookie of the Year, was also named to the All-NESCAC First Team in singles and doubles. Her previous NESCAC accolades include a First Team singles and Second Team doubles selection in 2019. In 2021, Bukzin went 3-0 in singles playing at the top of the ladder for the Mammoths and posted a 2-1 mark at No. 1 doubles with playing partner Julia Lendel. Bukzin is the fifth Mammoth to garner the NESCAC Player of the Year honor (Jamie Cohen – 2001; Rachel Holt – 2005; Kristen Raverta – 2006; Brittany Berckes – 2008).
 
Rigby stands at 5-1 as the top singles player for the Jumbos and is also 5-1 at No. 2 doubles with partner Casey Cummings heading into the NCAA Tournament. Rigby is the fifth Tufts player to earn Rookie of the Year honors (Julia Browne – 2008; Lindsay Katz – 2010; Mina Karamercan – 2016; Patricia Obeid – 2018).
 
Bayard guided Tufts to an unbeaten 4-0 record in the NESCAC East division and the program’s first appearance in the NESCAC Championship Match. The Jumbos fell to Wesleyan, 6-3, in the championship match but earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Tufts is making its 19th appearance in 20 seasons in the postseason tournament. Bayard garners the NESCAC Coach of the Year award for the fourth time in her career (2009, 2011, 2018) since arriving at Tufts in 2005.
 
2021 NESCAC Women’s Tennis All-Conference
 
Player of the Year: Jackie Bukzin, Amherst
Rookie of the Year: Tilly Rigby, Tufts
Co-Senior Sportswoman of the Year: Rachel Cross, Williams & Patricia Obeid, Tufts
Coach of the Year: Kate Bayard, Tufts
 

2021 NESCAC Women's Tennis All-Conference Team
First Team Singles
Name	Institution	Class	Hometown	Previous Selections
Jackie Bukzin	Amherst	Jr.	Manorville, N.Y.	2019 Rookie of the Year; 2019 1st Team Singles; 2019 2nd Team Doubles
Amy Delman	Middlebury	Fy.	Great Neck, N.Y.
Erica Ekstrand	Williams	Fy.	Santa Monica, Calif.
Kate Fleischman	Wesleyan	So.	Bellevue, Wash.
Tilly Rigby	Tufts	So.	Toronto, Ontario
Venia Yeung	Wesleyan	Jr.	Hong Kong	2019 1st Team Singles
First Team Doubles
Name	Institution	Class	Hometown	Previous Selections
Jackie Bukzin	Amherst	Jr.	Manorville, N.Y.	2019 Rookie of the Year; 2019 1st Team Singles; 2019 2nd Team Doubles
Julia Lendel	Amherst	Fy.	Staten Island, N.Y.
Maggie Dorr	Tufts	Jr.	Concord, Mass.	2019 1st Team Doubles
Caroline Garrido	Tufts	Jr.	Gastonia, N.C.	2019 1st Team Doubles
Jenny Tian	Williams	Fy.	Lake Mary, Fla.
Zoe Bennett	Williams	So.	Los Angeles, Calif.
Second Team Singles
Name	Institution	Class	Hometown	Previous Selections
Sophia Aulicino	Hamilton	Sr.	Simi Valley, Calif.	2019 2nd Team Singles
Gena Huang	Middlebury	Fy.	Bath, Ontario
Polina Kiseleva	Wesleyan	Sr.	Davie, Fla.
Carly Levitz	Colby	Jr.	Chappaqua, N.Y.	2019 2nd Team Singles
Hannah Sweeney	Bates	Sr.	Franklin, Mass.
Jenny Tian	Williams	Fy.	Lake Mary, Fla.
Second Team Doubles
Name	Institution	Class	Hometown	Previous Selections
Casey Cummings	Tufts	So.	Kailua, Hawaii
Tilly Rigby	Tufts	So.	Toronto, Ontario
Caitlin Goldberg	Wesleyan	So.	Highland Park, Fla.
Polina Kiseleva	Wesleyan	Sr.	Davie, Fla.
Katie Fleischman	Wesleyan	So.	Bellevue, Wash.
Venia Yeung	Wesleyan	Jr.	Hong Kong