Texas Border Business
RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas – The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) announced the tennis postseason honors on Wednesday, and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women’s tennis freshmen Marjorie Souza and Barbara Martinez were both recognized.
Souza was named to the Singles All-Conference Second Team. She went 10-8 overall and 3-2 in WAC Southwest Division play, primarily filling the No. 2 singles spot. Souza started her rookie campaign in the third flight and quickly impressed head coach West Nott, resulting in her moving up in the lineup. She played three matches at No. 1 this season.
Souza and Martinez were a fantastic freshman duo on the doubles courts, racking up an 8-3 overall record and going 4-0 in WAC Southwest doubles matches. They were voted to the Doubles All-Conference Second Team.
“I am really proud of the freshmen for adjusting so well to college tennis,” Nott said. “Marjorie was a class act all season, handling the pressure and stress like a veteran. Barbara is a special player who can hit all the shots and she really played her best when it counted the most. What impresses me is how much fun they are having within the team setting and elevating their teammates on and off the court.”
All-WAC honors were selected based on nominations and a vote by the 11 women’s head tennis coaches.
Grand Canyon’s Natasha Puehse was voted the WAC Player of the Year for the second year in a row. Sam Houston’s Megan Basson was the WAC Freshman of the Year honoree and Tarleton’s Elianne Douglas-Miron was named WAC Coach of the Year.
The WAC Tournament begins Friday at the Beaumont Municipal Tennis Center. UTRGV is the #4 seed and plays #5 Seattle U on Friday at 3 p.m.
Player of the Year: Natasha Puehse, Grand Canyon
Freshman of the Year: Megan Basson, Sam Houston
Coach of the Year: Elianne Douglas-Miron, Tarleton
Singles All-Conference
First Team
Megan Basson, Sam Houston
Martha Makantasi, Tarleton
Deniza Marcinkevica, Tarleton
Natasha Puehse, Grand Canyon
Santa Strombacha, Grand Canyon
Celia Vaudiau, Tarleton
Second Team
Elsa Boisson, Tarleton
Paula Cerda, Stephen F. Austin
Anna Kouchnareva, Stephen F. Austin
Fabienne Schmidt, Grand Canyon
Marjorie Souza, UTRGV
DAmera Sunskrithi, Sam Houston
Doubles All-Conference
First Team
Chloe Gavino/Lisa Zhu, NM State
Martha Makantasi/Deniza Marcinkevica, Tarleton
Natasha Puehse/Santa Strombacha, Grand Canyon
Second Team
Liliya Dimova/Elenda Kravela, Seattle U
Autum Prudhomme/Fabienne Schmidt, Grand Canyon
Marjorie Souza/Barbara Martinez, UTRGV
