AUBURN, Ala. – Three Tigers have received postseason honors from the SEC, the conference office announced on Wednesday. Auburn junior DJ Bennett was named first team All-SEC and junior Angella Okutoyi was tabbed second team All-SEC. Auburn freshman Merna Refaat was named to the conference’s All-Freshman team.
Bennett has now been honored by the SEC in each of her three seasons on the Plains. She was named SEC All-Freshman in 2023 and second team All-SEC in 2024. Okutoyi has now received a second team All-SEC selection in back-to-back seasons.
Bennett made program history in November by becoming the second Auburn player to reach the NCAA Singles Championship finals and was a part of the second doubles team in Auburn history to reach the NCAA Doubles Championship semifinals.
Bennett has posed a 26-10 overall singles record and a 14-6 dual match record primarily at the top of the Tigers’ singles lineup. Bennett and doubles partner Ava Hrastar are also the regulars at the top of the Auburn doubles lineup and hold an 18-11 overall record this season. The Auburn junior has picked up 15 singles victories over ranked opponents, including over No. 2 Mary Stoiana of Texas A&M, No. 8 Valerie Glozman of Stanford and No. 11 Celia-Belle Mohr of Vanderbilt this spring. Bennett has remained inside the top five of the ITA Singles Rankings and the top 25 of the ITA Doubles Rankings this spring and reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 2.
Okutoyi has had a breakout 2024-25 season for the Tigers. Okutoyi has accumulated a 26-5 overall singles record and has only suffered three singles dual matches losses with a 20-3 record between the No. 2 and No. 3 singles positions. The Nairobi, Kenya native has recorded five ranked singles victories and finished the regular season on a five-match winning streak.
Okutoyi also earned her first bid to the NCAA Singles Championship in the fall after finishing the ITA Southern Regional Singles Championship as a finalist. The junior achieved a career-high ITA singles ranking on April 8 of No. 47 and is currently ranked No. 55.
In her first season on the Plains, Refaat has played a pivotal role this season as the regular at the No. 4 singles position and No. 2 doubles position. Refaat has recorded a 22-9 overall singles record and a 14-8 record in dual matches. In doubles, she and partner Angella Okutoyi are 19-5 overall and 16-4 in dual matches at the No. 2 doubles position this season.
In the fall, Refaat received an invitation to the NCAA Singles Championships by winning the ITA Southern Regional Singles title and earned ITA Singles All-American status after reaching the round of 16 at the NCAA Singles Championship. Refaat reached an ITA singles ranking of No. 22 in the fall and is currently ranked No. 65. She and Okutoyi hold an ITA Doubles Ranking of No. 53.
With the three additions, Auburn players have now received 47 All-SEC and SEC All-Freshman honors from the conference in program history. Refaat becomes the fourth Tiger to ever be named to the SEC All-Freshman team.
The NCAA women’s tennis regional selections will be revealed on April 28 at 4 p.m. during a selection show streaming live on NCAA.com.