Big South Announces 2026 Women's Tennis Annual Award Winners
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (
www.BigSouthSports.com) -- Charleston Southern’s
Marina Skegro (Zagreb, Croatia) has been voted the Big South Conference Women’s Tennis Player of the Year by the league’s head coaches, it was announced today by the conference office. Longwood head coach
Charlotte Clarke was voted Coach of the Year, the Lancers’
Hima Fernando (Manchester, England) was voted Freshman of the Year and CSU’s
Carlota Farrés Carreter (Vic, Spain) was selected the Newcomer of the Year by the group. Longwood’s
Feline van Eijkelenburg (Haarlem, Netherlands) was voted Women’s Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year by the Big South’s tennis communications contacts.
Skegro is the second consecutive Buccaneer to be voted Big South Player of the Year. Finishing her Big South career with a 15-3 singles record, Skegro posted a 7-2 singles mark against mid-major opponents during her senior campaign. She went undefeated against Big South opponents on the singles court this season, never went to a third set, and only allowed a combined 15 points from her opponents in league play (2.5 points allowed per set). Skegro repeated as the Big South Individual Singles Champion back in October, and teamed with Farrés Carreter at No. 1 doubles, where they were 5-5 and and undefeated in conference matches.
Fernando is the first-ever Lancer to be voted Big South Women’s Tennis Freshman of the Year. She has played to a 14-9 record in all singles competitions this season, while being one of just three Longwood players to complete a perfect 3-0 mark in Big South singles action this spring. Fernando enters this week’s conference championship 7-6 in singles duals, playing at Nos. 2 and 3. In addition, she has gone 11-9 in doubles overall and 6-5 in duals, primarily at the No. 3 spot, where she is 5-2.
Clarke guided Longwood to a share of the Big South regular-season championship in just her second season as a head coach. The Lancers, picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll, defeated league favorite Charleston Southern on the road, 4-2, on March 19 for the program’s first-ever win over the Buccaneers, and finished 3-1 in league matches -- the school’s most league victories since 2019. Longwood’s nine wins this season are its most since securing 12 in 2019. The Big South Coach of the Year honor is the first in Longwood women’s tennis history, and the Lancers will be the No. 1 seed in this week’s conference championship for the first time as well.
Farrés Carreter is the third Buccaneer to be voted Big South Newcomer of the Year in the award’s three-year history. She earned Big South Player of the Week honors following a standout performance that included a victory over the No. 3 player from the nationally-ranked No. 23 Florida Gators, marking one of the most impressive wins of the season. Farrés Carreter finished with a 5-5 singles record, and held the lead in four of her six unfinished singles matches.
van Eijkelenburg carries a 3.933 grade-point average studying physics. She played to an 18-9 mark in singles in 2025-26, including a 9-5 mark in dual action, and was one of three Lancers to finish a perfect 3-0 in Big South singles play. van Eijkelenburg recently earned Longwood's Dr. Ray Gaskins Academic Excellence In Athletics Award recipient, a $3,500 scholarship applied to tuition for 2025-26, and is a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete, and received College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team recognition as a sophomore.
2026 BIG SOUTH CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TENNIS AWARD WINNERS
First Team All-Conference Singles
Marina Skegro, Charleston Southern University
Laura Wipfli, NJIT
Bali Song, Longwood
Angelina Joy Hug, UNC Asheville
Feline van Eijkelenburg, Longwood
Paula Menendez, NJIT
First Team All-Conference Doubles Teams
Marina Skegro & Carlota Farrés Carreter, Charleston Southern
Bali Song & Oriana Izarra, Longwood
Laura Wipfli & Irene Cocero, NJIT
Angelina Joy Hug & Sofia Segui, UNC Asheville
Second Team All-Conference Singles
Brenda Yoris, Charleston Southern
Hima Fernando, Longwood
Ladina Bruhin, Presbyterian College
Irene Cocero, NJIT
Alexandra Magia, Longwood
Carlota Farrés Carreter, Charleston Southern
Second Team All-Conference Doubles Teams
Roxana Valdes & Ladina Bruhin, Presbyterian College
Feline van Eijkelenburg & Alexandra Magia, Longwood
Brenda Yoris & Camila Molina Barranco, Charleston Southern
Carle Botha & Amike Botha, Charleston Southern
All-Academic Team
Marina Skegro, Charleston Southern
Natalie Crawford, Gardner-Webb
Feline van Eijkelenburg, Longwood
Laura Wipfli, NJIT
Mary Ellen Longmire, Presbyterian College
Angelina Joy Hug, UNC Asheville
Player of the Year
Marina Skegro, Charleston Southern
Freshman of the Year
Hima Fernando, Longwood
Coach of the Year
Charlotte Clarke, Longwood
Newcomer of the Year
Carlota Farrés Carreter, Charleston Southern
Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Feline van Eijkelenburg, Longwood