Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina women's tennis collected a pair of postseason accolades on Wednesday as sophomore transfer Mariya Dobreva was named second-team All-Southern Conference and freshman Axelle Van Beurden received the 2026 Sportsmanship Award as the league announced its postseason honors ahead of this week's conference championship tournament.
 
Dobreva is the fourth Catamount to earn All-SoCon honors over the last three seasons, joining Jade Groen (SoCon Player of the Year, 2025; All-SoCon, 2024 second-team) and Isabella Sambola (All-SoCon, first-team 2025). Van Beurden is the sixth Catamount to receive a specialty award from the SoCon since its inception in the 1990 season, with WCU earning a combined seven honors all-time.
 
Dobreva's first career all-conference honor comes after a career year for the Colorado State transfer. She collected 10 singles wins after closing the regular season with a pair of straight-set victories over conference foes. The Montreal, Quebec native recorded a four-match winning streak in February, picking up wins over Appalachian State, Young Harris, Gardner-Webb, and Presbyterian.
 
Van Beurden's specialty award is the first major accolade of her collegiate career. The freshman from Antwerp, Belgium, was one of two Catamounts to play in all 18 of WCU's matches this season. She scored a pair of singles wins on court No. 3 for the Catamounts. Van Beurden saw action across four courts in her rookie season, competing as the two through the five seeds this season.
 
WCU All-SoCon Singles Honorees:
Tessie Salame, 2008 (2nd team, No. 1)
Stacia Kissell, 2014 (1st team)
Stacia Kissell, 2016 (1st team)
Jordan Strickland, 2019 (2nd team; No. 1)
Jacy Smith, 2019 (2nd team, No. 2)
Kata Foldeak, 2021 (1st team)
Jade Groen, 2024 (2nd team, No. 2)
Isabella Sambola, 2025 (1st team)
Mariya Dobreva, 2026 (2nd team)
 
WCU Sportsmanship Award Winners:
Tara Livengood, 1999
Trish Hanson, 2006
Suzzanna Sjokvist, 2007
Jordan Strickland, 2017
Jordan Strickland, 2019
Jordyn King, 2022
Axelle Van Beurden, 2026
 
Up Next for The Catamounts:
Eighth-seeded Western Carolina is poised for postseason play as the Catamounts look to tackle the top-seeded and nationally-ranked Furman Paladins in Thursday's opening round of the 2026 Southern Conference Tennis Championships. First serve for the first match of the conference championships is set for 8:30 a.m. at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tenn.
 
Now a ticketed event, fans can purchase tickets to the 2026 Southern Conference Tennis Championships HERE.
 
The Catamounts enter the postseason after taking time away from the courts, most recently falling to UNCG back on April 7 in Greensboro. WCU is currently on a nine-match losing skid, with its last victory coming in a 4-2 win over UNC Asheville. Last season, the Catamounts claimed their first postseason victory in program history, downing the Mercer Bears 4-0 in the quarterfinals.
 
Furman rides into Chattanooga on a seven-match winning streak, most recently downing ETSU 6-1 to claim the 2026 Southern Conference regular season title. The Paladins are 68th in the ITA national tennis rankings, posting a 15-4 regular season record and a 7-0 mark in SoCon play.
 
 
Thursday's SoCon Championship Matchup:
#8 Western Carolina (2-17, 0-7 SoCon) vs. #1 Furman (15-4, 7-0 SoCon)
April 16, 2026 | 8:30 a.m. | Champions Club | Chattanooga, Tenn.
Live Results (IonCourt): https://tinyurl.com/mr2ucmtc
Tickets: https://tinyurl.com/yc4w4axv
 
Last Time We Met:
WCU's freshman duo of Axelle Van Buerden and Kelly Coetzee claimed a strong 6-2 victory on the No. 2 doubles court, but the Catamounts dropped a 7-0 defeat to Furman in Cullowhee in a match that was delayed over a month and a half because of weather. A short-handed WCU forfeited on the fifth and sixth courts, as well as the No. 3 doubles, as the Catamounts had to fight uphill against the formidable Furman lineup.
 
Van Buerden fell 6-1, 6-3 on the third court while Kelly Coetzee fell 6-2, 6-4 on the fourth. Mia Miranda claimed a 6-4 first set victory as the second seed, but fell 6-0, 1-0 (10-5) to close out the day as Furman took the 7-0 victory.
 
Players to Watch:
Mariya Dobreva recorded an undefeated individual effort her last time out, earning a singles win over UNCG's Sophia Cedeno on the top court. She also paired with Mia Miranda for a doubles win. Dobreva was one of three top court athletes in the Southern Conference to record double-digit singles wins, joining Furman's Elle Warren and Chattanooga's Addison Iacono in the feat with 10 victories.
 
Mia Miranda ranks second on the team in singles wins with five victories, while three of her losses came in third-set tiebreakers. Miranda took the first set over Elle Warren on the second court in their previous meeting this season before falling 10-5 in the tiebreaker.
 
Additionally, Kelly Coetzee and Axelle van Beurden powered to an impressive doubles win over Macy Hitchcock and Molly Robinson on the second doubles court in the first meeting this season. The freshman duo handed Robinson and Hitchcock their only doubles loss of the conference slate, rolling to a 6-2 victory.
 
Furman is led by SoCon Player of the Year, freshman Lillie Murphy, who has posted a 15-8 record in singles play this season. Murphy is 3-0 in singles play as the top seed against SoCon opponents, including a hard-fought win over Mariya Dobreva in their first meeting.
 
Macy Hitchcock (11), Bianca Ceroni (11), and Elle Warren (10) all have double-digit singles wins this season as well. Eight of Warren's wins have come on the top court, with her two other victories coming as the second seed late in the season.
 
Up Next for The Catamounts:
Should the Catamounts advance in the 2026 SoCon Championships, they would battle the winner of the matchup between #4 Wofford and #5 Samford at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 17.
 
2026 SoCon Postseason Awards:
2026 Southern Conference Player of the Year: Lillie Murphy, Furman
2026 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year: Lillie Murphy, Furman
2026 Southern Conference Coach of the Year: Michelle Dasso, Furman
2026 SoCon Sportsmanship Award: Axelle Van Beurden, Western Carolina
 
2026 All-Southern Conference Women's Tennis
First-team – Singles
Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
Ksenija Rage, ETSU
Lillie Murphy, Furman
Elle Warren, Furman
Addison Iacono, Chattanooga
Rufaro Magarira, Chattanooga
First-team – Doubles
Alessandra Caceres/Mariangel Estrella, ETSU
Elle Warren/Lillie Murphy, Furman
Grace Agster/Quinn Bernthal, Wofford
 
Second-team – Singles
Julia Millan, ETSU
Macy Hitchcock, Furman
Marina de Diego Quinones, Mercer
Sofiya Tsitavets, Mercer
Sophia Cedeno, UNCG
Mariya Dobreva, Western Carolina
Grace Agster, Wofford
Second-team Doubles
Julia Millan/Ksenija Rage, ETSU
Marina de Diego Quinones/Ines Homberg, Mercer
Eleni Liakonis/Hailey Troup, Samford

SoCon All-Freshman Team:
Mariangel Estrella, ETSU
Lillie Murphy, Furman
Elle Warren, Furman
Sophia Cedeno, UNCG
Addison Iacono, Chattanooga
Rufaro Magarira, Chattanooga