Tessa Trate enters her second season as a member of the CNU coaching staff in 2025-26. Trate was a record-setting member of the Captains from 2020-24.
After helping lift the Captains to the first C2C Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in program history as a player, Trate joined the staff in 2024 and promptly helped lead CNU women's tennis to a second straight conference crown. Trate helped lift Christopher Newport to a 13-win season, tying for the most wins in a season under head coach David Weiner, including a 4-1 win over UC Santa Cruz in the conference championship.
Trate helped coach a pair of CNU players to NCAA Singles and Doubles Championship appearances. During the season, the Captains collected the highest national ranking in program history, at No. 14, while CNU also set new standards in the singles and doubles national rankings. Raine Weis was ranked No. 14 in singles while Weis and Kylie Schaefer were ranked as high as No. 7 in the nation.
As a player, the Boone, N.C. native helped establish the Captains as a regional power and national threat. She was named the 2021 ITA Region Rookie of the Year, becoming just the third player in CNU history to garner the recognition. That year, she played with Amanda Yermal and earned Conference Doubles Team of the Year honors. She repeated that honor in her senior year when she paired with Raine Weis for one of the most impressive doubles campaigns in program history.
Trate made history for the Captains as the first ever four-time first team All-Conference selection in both singles and doubles. She also garnered All-State recognition seven times (three singles, four doubles) and, with Weis in 2022, was part of the first partnership to qualify for the NCAA Doubles Championships. She qualified for nationals twice, repeating the selection in 2024, and also qualified for the NCAA Singles Championship in her senior year.
Not just a dominant player, Trate was also named the C2C Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2024 and was a first team Academic All-District selection in 2023. She earned ITA Scholar-Athlete honors and was a Virginia Sports Information Directors Academic All-State pick.
Trate graduated with a degree in Psychology in 2024.
