ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy women's tennis team earned a pair of major awards on Friday, as freshman Nicole Fu named the 2026 Patriot League Rookie of the Year while head coach Keith Puryear's staff was selected as the league's 2026 Coaching Staff of the Year, the league office announced.
 
Capturing the program's second Patriot League Championship on Sunday and earning a berth in the upcoming NCAA Tournament, the Mids also garnered three all-league accolades as Fu and sophomore Emma Gu were picked to the All-Patriot League First Team and sophomore Grace Li received a nod to the All-Patriot League Second Team.
 
Fu becomes the second player in program history to claim Patriot League Rookie of the Year, joining Emily Tannenbaum in 2022. The All-Patriot League honors also mark the first for Fu, Gu and Li in their careers.
 
Joined by associate head coach Alessandra Pedergnana and assistant coach Matt Lennox in receiving the award this season, this is Puryear's third Patriot League Coach/Coaching Staff of the Year accolade and his 12th overall conference coach-of-the-year honor in his storied career.
 
Now holding a 338-118 record in 17 years at Navy, Puryear and Pedergnana captured their second league title with the Mids after delivering the 11th 20-win season with the program they started in 2009. Posting an incredible 18-1 home record that ended on a 14-match home win streak, the Mids also saw several players enter the program record books while Navy posted a .723 singles winning percentage and .610 doubles winning percentage over its 28 spring matches. The spring of 2026 saw another significant milestone for Puryear and his staff, as their team defeated Army twice in the same season for the second time in three years and delivered its fourth Star Match victory in five years.
 
Fu has been a rookie sensation, pacing the Mids with a 28-7 singles record that has included a 15-5 dual-season mark and going 4-1 in league matches. Fu's 28 singles wins are the fifth-most in program single-season history. Winning 16 of her first 18 matches, the freshman later picked up wins over returning all-league performers in Colgate's Sophia Montero and Army's Vennmukiil Mathivanan. Settling in at No. 2 singles with a 9-2 record, Fu has shown up in the biggest moments for Navy by winning her singles matches in the league semifinals against Army and the league championship against Boston U., garnering championship MVP honors. The freshman has also posted an 18-15 doubles record and gone 17-14 alongside junior Olivia Fermo, highlighted by the duo reaching the semifinals of the ITA Conference Masters' Patriot League Qualifier.
 
Establishing herself among the league's best, Gu has tallied a 25-12 singles mark in her sophomore campaign, going 15-7 in the spring while posting a 5-1 league record. Taking control of the No. 1 singles flight for Navy, Gu has gone 10-5 in the top spot and outlasted returning all-league selections in first-teamer Maggie Forkner of Lehigh, Bucknell's Abby Platt and twice against Colgate's Amelia Galin. Gu's 46 career singles wins also lead all active Navy players. Gu has also gone 8-9 in doubles play this year, tallying a 5-5 mark alongside former club partner and fellow sophomore Molly Bellia that included a 1-0 league record.
 
A breakout sophomore season has Li dominating in both singles and doubles play, going 22-5 on the singles court and notching a 16-5 doubles mark. Going 16-5 in spring singles action, Li has found her role at the No. 3 position with a 11-2 record that included a perfect 6-0 league mark and beating returning all-league selection Emma Sy of Army twice. Winning her first eight singles matches of the season, the sophomore rebounded from a four-match slide by posting a 14-match singles winning streak from Feb. 15 to April 18 that ranks second in program history. Li also found a doubles home alongside junior Julia Lee, as the pairing has registered an 11-5 overall record and a 4-1 league mark, including going undefeated (5-0) in the No. 2 spot.
 
Navy will learn its postseason destination on Monday, April 27, as the 2026 NCAA Tournament Selection Show will air at 4:30 p.m. on NCAA.com. The NCAA First and Second Rounds are slated for May 1-3.

2026 Patriot League Women's Tennis Major Awards
Player of the Year – Gabriella Mikaul, Boston U.
Doubles Team of the Year – Emily Ruckno and Olivia Mellynchuk, Army
Rookie of the Year – Nicole Fu, Navy
Coaching Staff of the Year – Navy (Head Coach Keith Puryear)
 
First Team All-League
Madison Smith, Army
Gabriella Mikaul, Boston U.
Abby Platt, Bucknell
Maggie Forkner, Lehigh
Emma Gu, Navy
Nicole Fu, Navy
 
Second Team All-League
Emily Ruckno, Army
Vennmukiil Mathivanan, Army
Nancy Liu, Boston U.
Madison Liu, Boston U.
Amelia Galin, Colgate
Lena Dogadalski, Lehigh
Elena Hartley, Loyola
Grace Li, Navy