AUBURN, Ala. – Five players on the Auburn men’s and women’s tennis teams have been named to the Academic All-District team, College Sports Communicators announced Tuesday. Freddy Blaydes, Nicholas Heng, Joey Phillips and Jake Kennedy earned the honor for the men’s team, while Ashton Bowers was selected from the women’s program.
Blaydes, a junior, competed in his first season on the Plains after transferring from Georgia. The psychology major played primarily at the No. 1 doubles position for the Tigers alongside his brother, Billy Blaydes. The pair went 21-14 overall and 16-8 in dual matches this season. The Blaydes brothers also qualified for the NCAA Doubles Championships in November and are currently ranked No. 11 nationally by the ITA.
Nicholas Heng capped his career with a strong senior season, going 18-12 overall in singles and 14-8 in dual matches, primarily at the No. 3 position. He was also a regular at the No. 2 doubles position, posting a 12-6 dual-match record.
The Madison, Alabama, native completed his political science degree this semester with a 3.97 GPA. He was also named the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men’s tennis during the 2026 SEC Championship. Heng is just the second Tiger to receive the honor, joining Auburn legend Tim Puetz, who won the award in 2011.
Joey Phillips earned a spot on the all-district team after maintaining a perfect 4.0 cumulative GPA in finance. The Auburn sophomore went 12-8 overall in singles and posted a 22-10 doubles record, including a 12-3 mark in dual matches, primarily at the No. 2 position.
Kennedy, an academic senior, finished the spring semester with a 4.0 GPA in finance at the Harbert College of Business. The Atlanta native regularly competed at the No. 3 doubles position for the Tigers this season.
Auburn sophomore Ashton Bowers has had a breakout 2026 season, posting a 31-5 singles record and a 32-6 doubles mark. She set the program record for most combined wins in a single season with 63 and also holds the single-season doubles wins record with 32. Bowers has compiled a 21-2 dual-match singles record, primarily at the No. 5 position, and has been a regular at No. 3 doubles alongside Ekaterina Khairutdinova. The pair is 29-3 in dual matches this spring.
Bowers is majoring in supply chain management at the Harbert College of Business.
The 2025-26 Academic All-District Men's and Women's Tennis Teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the court and in the classroom. The CSC Academic All-America program separately recognizes honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.