XULA’s Langa chosen NAIA National Player of the Week

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana’s Mbali Langa, winner of three matches against top-20 opponents in the ITA NAIA computer rankings, is the NAIA National Player of the Week in women’s tennis for April 8-14.

The NAIA announced the award Wednesday.

Langa was 4-0 overall, including these victories:

• 6-0 in doubles with McKenna Wheatley against Westcliff’s 15th-ranked Elena Gunfaus Sola and Anna Ruiz Masip.
• 7-5, 6-4 against Masip, ranked 20th in singles.
• 6-4, 6-3 against William Carey’s fifth-ranked Victoria Vieten.

XULA, No. 4 in the NAIA coaches poll, won at home 4-1 against No. 15 Westcliff and 4-0 against No. 8 William Carey. In the ITA NAIA computer rankings, Langa is 32nd in singles and 14th in doubles with Wheatley.

Langa is a senior from Johannesburg, South Africa. She also won Red River Athletic Conference Player of the Week for the same period.

This is the seventh all-time NAIA National Player of the Week award for XULA women’s tennis and the Gold Nuggets’ first since Kareemah Muhammad in April 2022.

Next for the Gold Nuggets will be their regular-season finale, 2 p.m. Thursday at home against NAIA No. 13 LSU-Alexandria. The XULA women will travel to San Antonio, Texas, for the RRAC Tournament April 25-27, and that champion will earn an automatic bid to NAIA nationals May 14-18 at Mobile, Ala.

XULA is 18-5, ranked fourth in the coaches poll and has an active season-high win streak of seven.