Carmel, IN - The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) announced the results of the Women's Tennis preseason poll, with the reigning HCAC Champion Transylvania University Pioneers predicted, in a vote amongst league coaches, to bring home the title again in 2026.

The Fightin' Engineers from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology claimed enough of the coaches votes to be predicted as a second-place finisher in 2026 by a narrow one-point edge over third place Earlham.  That should provide some motivation for the 2025 conference runner-up Quakers, who are hoping to have another impressive season this spring.  The Anderson University Ravens and Hanover College Panthers round out the top half of the preseason poll. 
  Transylvania University Pioneers – Predicted Finish = 1^st Place with 46 poll points and five first place votes. 
Two-time HCAC player of the year Katherine Taylor has graduated and is no longer with the Pioneers, but this team is still loaded with talent and should compete confidently towards another title this Spring. The Pios return a trio of First Team All HCAC players from last year in Seniors Maria Hayes (Grayson, KY) and Maddie Williams (Mayfield, KY) and Sophomore teammate Paulina Razo-Zapata (San Antonio, TX).  In addition to those three, 2025 HCAC All-Conference Honorable Mention players Lily Hartman (Lexington, KY) and Ellie Held (San Antonio, TX) also return for Transylvania. The Pioneers are led by reigning HCAC Women's Tennis Coach of the Year, Bill Carey, and he expects to see Seniors Eva Clark (London, KY) and Meredith Cooper (Pineville, OR) play an important role in the team's success this season.
 
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Fightin' Engineers – Predicted Finish = 2^nd Place with 40 poll points and two first place votes.
The HCAC coaches are predicting Head Coach Matt Wilson's Rose-Hulman team to finish the season just behind the Pioneers.  The Engineers return two First Team All HCAC players in Sophomore Emerson Donaldson (Greenwood, IN) and 2025 HCAC Newcomer of the Year Lia Taylor (Tempe, AZ).   The roster also touts a trio of 2025 HCAC All-Conference Honorable Mention student-athletes from 2025 in Senior Camille Clark (Planfield, IN) and Sophomores Addie Patterson (Versailles, KY) and Nova Gladden (Chicago, IL).  Rose-Hulman also has four young players that should have a noticeable impact in HCAC competition.  Sophomores Julia Burt (Nashville, IN) and Katie Pfund (Gilbert, AZ) will be joined by two Freshmen: Paige Mills (Powder Springs, GA) and Autumn Korey (Avon Lake, OH) in competition this spring.
 
Earlham College Quakers – Predicted Finish = 3^rd Place with 39 poll points and 1 first place votes. 
Predicted to be right on the heels of the Engineers is an Earlham Quaker team led by Coach Jacob Freeland.  Freeland's Quakers lost in the conference championship match last year, but showed great promise, and hope to build on that success in 2026. The Quakers bring back two outstanding First Team All HCAC student-athletes from Ghana in Sophomore Lawrencia Manu and Vanessa Akuaku.  In addition, Sophomore 2025 First Team All HCAC competitor Mackenzie Davis (Hilliard, OH) will provide additional strength to the solid Quaker roster.  Freeland is also excited about two entering freshmen athletes: Antonio Dean (Miami, FL) and Ava Marroni (Gas City, IN).  Sophomore Paige Hobbs (Maryville, OH) and  Junior Natalie McCann (Georgetown, OH) round out the Earlham athletes to watch this spring. 
 
Anderson University Ravens – Predicted Finish = 4^th Place with 35 poll points. 
Coach Scott Greve's Anderson Ravens will be led this spring by a trio of returning First Team All HCAC players: Senior Ella Frantz (Gas City, IN), Junior Gabby Hosier (Alexandria, IN) and Sophomore Abby Cunningham (Monroe City, IN).
The Ravens should also see impressive play from two senior teammates from Indiana, Ella Maiden (Sheridan) and Jenna Jenkins (Mooresville).   Another Mooresville native, Junior Kate Oberle and Sophomore Paula Torrent (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain) are two additional AU talents to watch this spring. 
 
Hanover College Panthers – Predicted Finish = 5^th Place with 24 poll points.
The Hanover Panthers hope that First Team All HCAC returner Madeline Santner (Bloomington, IN) can lead the team up the rankings from their predicted fifth place finish this spring.  Coach Eric LaRue touts Jenny Powless (Flora, IL), Hailey Vandveter (Bloomington, IN), Savannah Heist (Somerset, KY) and May Kett (Lundinghausen, Germany) as four other athletes who should help the Panthers stay competitive this season.
           
Franklin College Grizzlies – Predicted Finish = 6^th Place with 20 poll points. 
Franklin College brings back one First Team All HCAC player in Ailyn Hendricks, a local junior from Franklin.  Hendricks will be joined by Sofie Ballesteros, a Junior from nearby Greenwood, Indiana who made HCAC All-Conference Honorable Mention in 2025.  Coach Ryan Hammer will also lean on two Freshmen, Emma Tranter (Brownsburg, IN) and Reagan Cox (Crawfordsville, IN), to gain points throughout the season for the Grizzlies and start building a strong foundation for success in 2026 and the future.
 
Manchester University Spartans – Predicted Finish = 7^th Place with 13 poll points.
Coach Kyle Watson's Manchester University Spartans are predicted to finish in seventh place by the other HCAC Coaches.  2025 HCAC All-Conference Honorable Mention player Alivia Paul, a junior from 12 Mile, Indiana and talented sophomore Grace Keener (Fort Wayne, IN both hope to prove the Spartans can outperform that predicted finish.
 
Berea College Mountaineers – Predicted Finish = 8^th Place with Seven poll points.
Head Coach Rich Dodd is hopeful to have the Berea College Mountaineers show competitive promise in HCAC play this spring. The Mountaineers will be led by 2025 HCAC All-Conference Honorable Mention returner Sophie Clapp, a sophomore from nearby Richmond, Kentucky. 

For more information on HCAC Women's Tennis, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the HCAC's home on the Internet at www.heartlandconf.org.  Be sure to stay up to date on all of your Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference news by following @HCACDIII on Twitter and by liking the "HCAC DIII" Facebook page.