Canyons Women's Tennis Earns ITA All-Academic Team and Scholar-Athlete Awards

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

College of the Canyons women's tennis has been named an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team, while seeing six players from its 2026 roster earn Scholar-Athlete awards.

Canyons was one of just 12 community college women's tennis programs from across the nation to be honored, with six of those teams coming from California.

ITA All-Academic Teams must have a combined team GPA of 3.2 or above.

A combined 81 student-athletes were recognized with individual Scholar-Athlete awards.

Included among the honorees are Canyons student-athletes Emma Chodur, Michele Figg, Breana Lemos, Lauren Neal, Baylee Renfro and Olivia Snyder.

To be named an ITA Scholar-Athlete players must have a GPA of at least 3.5 for the academic year. 

"This recognition reflects the commitment our student-athletes make every day, both in the classroom and on the court," said College of the Canyons head coach Patty LaBat. "I am incredibly proud of our players' accomplishments. Their dedication, discipline and ability to excel academically while competing at the highest level is a testament to the culture we've built in our program."

Canyons finished the 2025-26 academic year with a combined team GPA of 3.58, while producing a memorable season that included several program firsts.

COC completed the season with a 12-7 overall record and 10-4 mark in conference play, while advancing to the postseason for just the third time in program history. The No. 4 seed Cougars then played to a 5-3 win over No. 5 Riverside City College, representing the first postseason victory in program history. 

Canyons also brought home the program's first individual Western State Conference (WSC) titles, with Chodur winning the singles title, and the duo of Chodur/Renfro taking the conference's doubles championship.

Chodur was named the WSC Player of the Year, becoming the first player in program history to receive that honor. Renfro and Neal also earned All-WSC accolades.

Chodur later finished runner-up at the 3C2A State Championship singles tourney to achieve another program first, capping a season in which the freshman also earned Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Rookie of the Year honors. 

Canyons was also represented on the ITA Junior College All-American team with Chodur and Renfro each earning All-American honors for the 2026 season.

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. 

—Photo by Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information