The College Sports Communicators (CSC) organization recently announced the 2025-26 Academic All-Americans for women's tennis. Four NESCAC student-athletes were selected for the three teams. Wesleyan's Leila Epstein was a First Team selection, while Tina She of Amherst and Elsie Van Wieren were Second Team honorees. Tufts' Natalie Hu rounded out the selections witha  spot on the Third Team. The award recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the court and in the classroom.

Epstein, who recently graduated with a 4.00 GPA as a molecular biology and biochemistry major, returned to the Cardinal lineup this season after suffering a season-ending injury in 2025. The senior earned her second career All-NESCAC First Team Singles honor, previously earned in 2023, after anchoring the Cardinals at No. 1 with an 11-11 overall record and a 5-9 record in that position. Ranked 28th in the nation, Epstein faced nearly a dozen Top 20 opponents and defeated UChicago's Anika Paul, ranked 14th. Epstein helped the Cardinals win their second national title in program history

She, an economics and mathematics double major, boasting a 3.81 GPA, was named NESCAC Player of the Year, All-NESCAC Singles First Team, and All-NESCAC Doubles Second Team. She also earned accolades from the ITA in being named Northeast Region Player to Watch.This season, She was in the top spot, and finished ranked third in the nation by the ITA. She earned her first appearance at the NCAA Singles Tournament, where she fell in the round of 32, and was the first Mammoth to make the NCAA Singles Tournament since 2019. She finished her sophomore year at 24-5 and helped to push the Mammoths to a Sweet 16 appearance on the team side of the NCAA Tennis Championship.

Van Wieren is a rising junior and is majoring in molecular biology and biochemistry. She posted a 25-8 mark in singles action, including a 16-4 record in dual matches. Her performance earned her a spot on the All-NESCAC First Team for the second consecutive season. Van Wieren was selected to compete at the NCAA Individual Championships. Entering as the eighth seed, the Panther defeated two opponents before falling in the quarterfinals. Her effort marked the furthest a Middlebury women's tennis athlete has advanced in the national tournament since 2023. Van Wieren sports a 48-14 record through two seasons and is currently fifth in program history for most singles victories in the last decade. In doubles, Van Wieren tallied a 20-7 record with 14 victories during spring action. Alongside doubles partner Anna Lardner, the duo forged 10 wins and an All-NESCAC First Team selection. Entering her third season, Van Wieren has 47 doubles triumphs. Off the court, Van Wieren is a NESCAC All-Academic selection and Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Scholar Athlete. She has been an undergraduate research assistant at the University of Michigan and published a blog through the Association for Academic Surgery (AAS) focused on athletic discipline and her emerging research career. Van Wieren helped the Panthers to a 14-7 mark and a spot in the NCAA Tournament Regional Final. 

Hu is Tufts' first Academic All-America® recipient in women's tennis since 2014. A rising senior as a cognitive brain science studies major, Hu carries a perfect 4.0 grade point average at Tufts. She is also a two-time NESCAC All-Academic Team honoree who has minors in computer science and Japanese. She is a member of the Psi Chi international psychology honor society. On the court, Hu started at No. 1 doubles and at various singles positions for a Tufts team that is ranked No. 20 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national poll and earned an NCAA Tournament berth. Hu was selected for an All-NESCAC Second Team in doubles, where she had an 11-3 record overall for the 2025-26 season. Hu and sophomore teammate Brooklyn Bindas compiled a 7-1 record during the spring dual meet season primarily at No. 1 doubles. Hu was 8-3 in singles, including 7-2 for dual meets in which she played in the fourth, fifth, and sixth singles spots for the Jumbos. A NESCAC All-Conference honoree twice in her career, Hu also earned a second-team doubles award for the 2024 season. She helped Tufts advance to the NCAA Tournament Second Round. An ITA New England Doubles Semifinalist in 2024, Hu has a career doubles winning percentage of .667 (36-18).

The NESCAC boasts over 400 CSC Academic All-Americans, including 19 in women's tennis, in conference history.

2026 CSC Academic All-America Women's Tennis Team

FIRST TEAM
Name	School	Yr.	GPA	Major
Izzy Antanavicius	Emory University	Sr.	3.91	Human Health
Iris Berman (2)	Emory University	Sr.	4.00	Psychology & Sociology
Sarena Biria	University of Chicago	Jr.	3.51	Biological Sciences
Leila Epstein	Wesleyan University	Sr.	4.00	Molecular Biology & Biochemistry
Eliana Hanna	Washington University in St. Louis	Sr.	3.88	Finance
Emily Kantrovitz (1)	Emory University	Sr.	3.98	Sociology
Artemis Pados (3)	MIT	Sr.	4.00	Electrical Engineering & Computer Science
Katalina Wang	Case Western Reserve University	Sr.	3.76	Cognitive Science
SECOND TEAM
Name	School	Yr.	GPA	Major
Eleanor Archer	Washington University in St. Louis	Jr.	3.65	Biology
Lauren Rha	Pomona-Pitzer	Sr.	3.72	Neuroscience
Tina She	Amherst College	So.	3.81	Economics & Mathematics
Elsie Van Wieren	Middlebury College	So.	3.82	Molecular Biology & Biochemistry
THIRD TEAM
Name	School	Yr.	GPA	Major
Kaya De Bruijn (3)	Gustavus Adolphus College	Sr.	4.00	Environmental Studies, Geology
Natalie Hu	Tufts University	Jr.	4.00	Cognitive Brain Science Studies
Rebecca Kong	Claremont-Mudd-Scripps	So.	3.94	Undecided
Lauren Long	Washington and Lee University	Sr.	3.84	Biochemistry
Carolina Walters	Saint Vincent College	Sr.	4.00	Philosophy

(1) – 1st team Academic All-America® Women’s Tennis in 2024-25
(2) – 2nd team Academic All-America® Women’s Tennis in 2024-25
(3) – 3rd team Academic All-America® Women’s Tennis in 2024-25