CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Hima Fernando has been named Big South Conference Freshman of the Year and Charlotte Clarke Coach of the Year, highlighting six Longwood women's tennis players on the 2026 All-Big South Teams, the league announced Wednesday.
Junior Feline van Eijkelenburg also earned Big South Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors, the Lancers' first in men's and women's tennis history.
Fernando claimed second-team singles honors as well, while classmate Bali Song (first-team singles and doubles), senior Oriana Izarra (second-team doubles), sophomore Alexandra Magia (second-team singles and doubles) and van Eijkelenburg (first-team singles and second-team doubles) also were cited.
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 their first-ever win over the Buccaneers and finished 3-1 in league matches. Longwood's nine wins this season are its most since securing 12 in 2019.
Fernando 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. A native of Manchester, England, Fernando is 7-6 in singles duals, playing at Nos. 2 and 3. She has gone 11-9 in doubles overall and 6-5 in duals, primarily at the No. 3 spot, where she is 5-2.
van Eijkelenburg, who has now earned five all-Big South honors in her career, played to a 18-9 mark in singles in 2025-26, including a 9-5 record in dual action. The Haarlem, Netherlands, product has gone 6-8 at No. 1. She is one of three Lancers to finish a perfect 3-0 in Big South singles play. She was named Big South Player of the Week March 25 and went 12-13 in doubles, including 6-8 in duals, earning all six dual wins at No. 2 doubles.
Song is 15-11 overall this season in singles, including a 6-8 mark in duals. She is also 15-9 in doubles action, going 8-4 at the No. 1 spot, primarily with Izarra.
Song, a native of San Nicolás de los Garza, México, was named Big South Freshman of the Week twice on April 8 and Jan. 28 this season.
Izarra, of Valencia, Venezuela, also a second-team doubles selection in 2024 as a sophomore, is 13-8 in doubles on the season and 8-4 in duals.
Magia, who also earned second-team doubles honors as a freshman, is 10-10 in singles this season, including going 3-0 in Big South matches. An Athens, Greece, native, Magia went 4-4 at No. 5 this year. She also was 10-10 in doubles, playing to a 7-5 mark in the spring. She was a perfect 3-0 at No. 3.
Academically, van Eijkelenburg is a 3.933 student in physics at Longwood. She earned Longwood's Dr. Ray Gaskins Academic Excellence In Athletics Award, a $3,500 scholarship applied to tuition for 2025-26. She has been a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete as freshman and sophomore and was selected to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team as a sophomore.
Longwood, the top seed in the Big South tournament begins its quest for a title in Lexington, S.C., Friday at 9 a.m., in the semifinals against either fourth-seeded NJIT or No. 5 Presbyterian.
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