GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell College's women's tennis team has won seven Midwest Conference titles in a row, and the Pioneers have no plans of letting up in the 2026-27 campaign.
The team features three senior leaders in
Pari Chavan '27 (15-9 doubles record in 2025-26, 11 singles wins),
Paige Sargent '27 (13-11 doubles record) and
Addie Persian '27 (5-2 singles, 6-2 doubles).
"Pari and Paige have been at the top of the lineup the last few years and have done an excellent job of leading by talent and example," said Grinnell coach
Zack Hasenyager. "I'm excited to see them take over as cultural leaders of the team, as well. Addie is aggressive on the doubles court and brings more passion than anybody on the team. She represents the heart and soul of what we can do on the court."
The junior class consists of
Sofia Bolanos '28 (2-1 singles, 1-0 doubles),
Nina Perkins '28 (2-1 singles, 4-1 doubles) and
Kayla Surpless '28 (3-1 singles, 6-0 doubles). "As a group, these three have improved as much as anybody on the team from their first years to now," said Hasenyager. "They will make serious pushes to the singles and doubles lineups and are as competitive as anybody on the team. They've consistently won for us against conference opponents."
The sophomore class includes
Marta Gonzalez '29 (18-4 singles, 9-4 doubles),
Doyeon Kim '29 (4-0 singles, 3-1 doubles),
Luiza Kohn '29 (7-3 singles, 6-1 doubles),
Eliana Martin '29 (11-2 singles, 16-3 doubles) and
Logan Tom '29 (13-6 singles, 18-6 doubles). "I love the competitiveness of this group," said Hasenyager. "Logan, Marta and Eliana got a lot of match experience last year and will look to build on that. Luiza is talented and can contribute a lot and Doyeon battled some injuries, but showed what she's capable of with her success at last fall's ITA."
Rounding out the team are first-years
Laurel Buttrick '30,
Rachel George '30,
Margot Groundwater '30,
Sanne Ijpma '30 and
Mailani Ramos-Platt '30.
"The first-year class is working hard and we're discovering their strengths," said Hasenyager. "As a group, they've bought into the culture and ethos of the team. We have a nice mix of individuals."
Hasenyager said the combination of experience and youth will make for a fun season. "This is the last time we'll have the fall conference season before switching to the spring season, so we have an opportunity to end the era by cementing our legacy as the top program in the league," he said. "There will be plenty of competition, though. Lake Forest and Cornell are traditionally strong. The addition of Luther, and improvement from the rest of the teams, will make for a fun conference race. We're confident in our abilities and want to continue the title streak and earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament."
