STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton State Tennis is riding high going into the Western Athletic Conference Tournament this weekend, picking up its fifth weekly awards sweep from the league on Tuesday.
Helping the Texans clinch the No. 1 seed in the WAC Tournament, sophomore Maria Castano was named WAC Singles Player of the Week while seniors Ximena Morales and Emma Persson earned WAC Doubles Team of the Week honors. Castano picked up her second weekly award of the season and Morales and Persson came up with their third honor from the WAC in 2026.
The award increased the Texans’ midseason monthly/weekly award total at the Division I level to 66 under head coach Elianne Douglas-Miron.
Castano capped off the 2026 campaign with her ninth singles victory of the season, winning the first set tiebreak en route to a straight sets win over ACU’s Masha Vrsalovic at No. 1 singles on Saturday. Her victory clinched the match against ACU, helping the Texans complete the WAC sweep. The Dominican Republic native was key in the Texans finishing with 15 regular season wins and an 8-1 home record.
After being named the 2025 WAC Freshman of the Year, Castano continued the momentum in the fall of her sophomore campaign. She won the singles title as the No. 1 seed at the WAC Fall Tennis Invitational, qualifying for the ITA Conference Masters Championships in San Diego. Castano, the Texans’ leader in singles and doubles wins last year, also advanced to the Round of 32 in the singles main draw at the ITA Texas Regional Championships.
Morales and Persson only lost one game combined in the last two regular season matches, helping the Texans complete the WAC sweep with a win against ACU on Saturday. The senior duo was victorious in their final career doubles matches in Stephenville, moving their record to 11-3. Morales won her 14th doubles match of the season while Persson was victorious for the 15th time in doubles.
Morales’ versatility has been displayed in doubles throughout her college career. She was penciled in at the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles position in 2025, posting a 9-1 record mark in No. 2 doubles. Along with her four Doubles Player of the Week honors from the WAC, Morales was also named WAC Doubles Player of the Month in October 2023.
Persson received All-WAC Second Team honors in doubles in 2025 and was a five-time WAC Doubles Player of the Week award winner last season. The senior from Båstad, Sweden, finished as a doubles champion in the consolation bracket of the 2024 ITA Texas Regional Championships. The 2023 WAC Player of the Year and WAC Freshman of the Year was on the WAC All-Tournament Doubles Team in 2023, one of six players among all WAC programs.
The top-seeded Texans will play their WAC Semifinal match against No. 4 seed UT Arlington on Friday at 10 a.m. at the Arlington Tennis Center.
Singles Player of the Week
Maria Castano (April 14)
Maria Castano (March 31)
Emma Persson (March 17)
Aya Ishii (March 10)
Ximena Morales (March 3)
Aya Ishii (Feb. 10)
Marissa Minetti (Jan. 20)
Doubles Team of the Week
Ximena Morales and Emma Persson (April 14)
Aya Ishii and Marissa Minetti (March 31)
Aya Ishii and Marissa Minetti (March 17)
Ximena Morales and Emma Persson (March 10)
Aya Ishii and Emma Persson (Feb. 24)
Aya Ishii and Marissa Minetti (Feb. 17)
Aya Ishii and Marissa Minetti (Feb. 10)
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