LUBBOCK, Texas (June 3, 2026) – For the first time in program history, Lubbock Christian University men's tennis placed student-athletes on the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America® Team, with
Mattia Ghedin and
Pablo Segura earning First Team honors,
Kelly Giese receiving Second Team recognition and
Andres De Los Rios collecting Third Team accolades in Men's Tennis.
The Division II Academic All-America® program is being financially supported by the NCAA Division II national governance structure to assist the College Sports Communicators with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2025-26 Division II Academic All-America® program. Six of the 18 Academic All-America® Division II men's tennis honorees boast a perfect 4.0 GPA in their undergraduate work or graduate school, including Ghedin and Segura.
Ghedin, a senior exercise science major from Treviso, Italy, also helped anchor the nationally ranked Chaparrals lineup throughout the championship season behind a 4.00 GPA. He went 28-11 in singles and 23-15 in doubles during the 2025-26 campaign. The First Team All-LSC selection in singles went 8-0 in LSC play and 20-5 in duals (15-5 at No.3 spot) to finish the season nationally ranked No.43. He had an incredible season in doubles, teaming with Giese to earn LSC Doubles Team of the Year (they went 18-10 together at the No.1 spot in duals) and the tandem completed the season ranked No.11 (went 5-4 against nationally ranked competition). Ghedin co-led LCU on the season in doubles wins (23), going 23-15 in doubles play. In three seasons with LCU, the Grand Canyon transfer completed his LCU career with a 68-33 mark in singles and 63-37 in doubles.
Segura, a business major from Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, carried a perfect 4.00 GPA while producing a 17-7 record in both singles and doubles play in duals (went 25-14 overall in singles and 22-11 overall in doubles). The junior earned ITA Cup qualification and All-LSC honors after spending the season nationally ranked in both singles and doubles competition (ended the season nationally ranked No.27 in singles and No.23 in doubles, teamed with De Los Rios). Segura, who went 12-6 this season at the No.2 spot in singles (duals) will return next season with a career record of 82-38 in singles and 62-33 in doubles.
Giese, a management graduate from Manhattan Beach, Calif., adds to his honors after earning ITA All-American (singles), LSC Singles Player of the Year, LSC Doubles Team of the Year (with Ghedin) and LSC Championships MVP honors. Completing the season nationally ranked No. 3 in singles (went 11-0 against nationally ranked opponents on the season) and No. 11 in doubles (with Ghedin), Giese posted a 23-1 singles record in duals (34-5 overall) and 17-8 doubles (23-13 overall, co-leading LCU in doubles wins) mark while competing primarily at the No. 1 positions. He also set a program single-season record with 34 singles victories and qualified for the ITA Cup last fall. Giese, who spent all four seasons of the program's existence and graduated from LCU, intends to transfer to Nebraska for his final season of eligibility. He takes with him a career record of 83-26 in singles (19-5 against nationally ranked opponents) and 70-32 in doubles (13-12 against nationally ranked opponents).
De Los Rios, a finance major from Madrid, Spain, compiled a 31-12 singles record and 24-9 doubles mark while earning All-LSC recognition in both singles and doubles competition. Nationally ranked as high as No. 10 in singles during the season, he also qualified for the ITA Cup after finishing as the ITA South Central Region singles finalist. De Los Rios went 18-7 in duals (in singles), going 12-3 at the No.4 spot and finished the season nationally ranked No.30 (closed his career going 8-1 in his final nine matches). He teamed up with Segura to go 17-8 in duals (all at No.2 spot) and finished the season No.23 in the final national doubles rankings. His 31 singles wins this season marked the second-highest single-season wins totals (in singles) in program history. In two seasons with LCU, he compiled a 54-19 record in singles and a 44-23 record in doubles play.
The quartet of Lady Chaps mark 43 student-athletes in Lubbock Christian history to earn Academic All-America® honors, and Ghedin and Segura give LCU 15 all-time First Team Academic All-America selection across all sports (David Bulls was the first LCU student-athlete to receive Academic All-America honors, claiming it in baseball in 1983). The four members marks 24 LCU student-athletes to receive the distinction since the university began competing at the NCAA Division II level in 2015-16, with eight honorees recognized during the 2025-26 athletic calendar year, joining men's soccer standout Connor Pettigrew (First Team), volleyball's Lily Bickley (First Team), and women's tennis selections AnaMaria Zoric (First Team) and Andrea De Bernardo. The eight Academic All-Americans for LCU is a single-season record, surpassing the mark of five from the 2011-12 season.
It was a successful fourth season in the history of LCU tennis at the NCAA level. The men's squad finished with a No.6 national ranking, as the national quarterfinalists completed the season 23-6, which included an 8-0 conference mark and a 13-4 record against nationally ranked competition. Of their six losses, two were against NCAA Division I programs and four were against teams ranked inside the top-20 (three inside the top-10).
