MARLBOROUGH, Mass. - The NEWMAC has revealed the 2026 Men's Tennis Major Awards and All-Conference selections, with Babson College taking home two major awards, and MIT securing one. The 2026 NEWMAC Men's Tennis All-Conference team was voted on by the eight men's tennis coaches.
Babson's
Alexander Merson (Palisades Park, N.J.) was voted the Athlete of the Year, while MIT's
Tyler Li (San Diego, Calif.) was named the Rookie of the Year. Babson's coaching staff was voted the NEWMAC Men's Tennis Coaching Staff of the Year by their peers.
Merson headlines the all-conference selections and is joined by teammates
Rishi Batlanki (Monroe Township, N.J.),
Sebastian Mendoza (Weston, Fla.),
Mason Nguyen (El Dorado Hills, Calif.), and
Maxim Zlobinsky (Greenvale, N.Y.). Li was also voted onto the first team along with fellow MIT teammates
Hunter Liao (Hagerstown, Md.) and
Siddharth Marathe (Pune, India). Emerson College's
Filippo Nocchi (Pontedera, Italy) represents the Lions on the team, along with Springfield College's
Angelo Guzman (Jefferson Station, N.Y.).
Guzman and his partner,
Liam Huppke (Markham, Canada), were also selected on doubles, as were Nocchi and his partner,
Connor Leung (Mercer Island, Wash.) Babson's Merson and Zlobinksy also made an appearance as a doubles team, as did Mendoza with his teammate
Edward Wang (Burr Ridge, Ill.). The Babson duo of
Louis Bourn (Geneva, Switzerland) and
Martin Mejia (Cali, Colombia) also received the honor at doubles. MIT's
Grant Gallagher (Irvine, Calif.) and
Adam Sun (Glendale, Ariz.) round out the All-Conference selections at doubles.
2026 Men's Tennis NEWMAC All-Conference Team
Athlete of the Year- Alexander Merson (Sr.), Babson College
Merson went 4-0 in NEWMAC singles play, without dropping a set. Three of those wins came at the number one spot. He also went 3-1 at number one doubles versus conference opponents. He is currently ranked seventh in the nation in singles by the ITA and is 18-2 on the season in singles matches.
Rookie of the Year- Tyler Li (Fy.), MIT
In his rookie campaign, Li went 17-4 on the season and was undefeated in conference play. He also has wins over Bowdoin, Claremont Mudd-Scripps, Cal Tech, Wesleyan, Brandeis, Babson, and Colby this season.
Laurels of Academic Excellence- Edward Wang, Babson
The sophomore boasts a 3.81 GPA with a concentration in business.
Coaching Staff of the Year- Babson College
Babson went 7-0 in NEWMAC play, earning the top seed in the NEWMAC Championship, and going on to win their second straight NEWMAC title. The Engineers are ranked fourth in the region and 12th in the nation by the ITA. This is the second straight NEWMAC Coaching Staff of the Year award for the Beavers. The staff is led by Director of Tennis and Head Coach
Michael Kopelman, who is joined by assistants
Mihir Auty, Kartik Erodula, and
Andrew Imrie.
| Team |
Name |
Institution |
| All-Conference Singles |
Rishi Batlanki |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Singles |
Sebastian Mendoza |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Singles |
Alexander Merson |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Singles |
Mason Nguyen |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Singles |
Maxim Zlobinsky |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Singles |
Filippo Nocchi |
Emerson College |
| All-Conference Singles |
Tyler Li |
MIT |
| All-Conference Singles |
Hunter Liao |
MIT |
| All-Conference Singles |
Siddharth Marathe |
MIT |
| All-Conference Singles |
Angelo Guzman |
Springfield College |
| All-Conference Doubles |
Sebastian Mendoza/Edward Wang |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Doubles |
Louis Bourn/Martin Mejia |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Doubles |
Alexander Merson/Maxim Zlobinsky |
Babson College |
| All-Conference Doubles |
Filippo Nocchi/Connor Leung |
Emerson College |
| All-Conference Doubles |
Grant Gallagher/Adam Sun |
MIT |
| All-Conference Doubles |
Angelo Guzman/Liam Huppke |
Springfield College |
About the NEWMAC
The NEWMAC is an association of 13 selective academic institutions: Babson College, Clark University, U.S Coast Guard Academy, Emerson College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mount Holyoke College, Saint Anselm College (beginning reclassification process with NCAA in 2027-28), Salve Regina University, Smith College, Springfield College, Wellesley College, Wheaton College, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, that are committed to providing high quality competitive athletic opportunities for student-athletes within an educational and respectful environment that embodies the NCAA Division III Philosophy. The conference also partners with eight Associate Members: Brandeis University (Women's Lacrosse, 2026-2027), New York University (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), Norwich University (Football), Simmons College (Rowing), SUNY Maritime College (Football), SUNY New Paltz (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Football), and Vassar College (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), while sponsoring 21 sports.