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SoCon women's tennis postseason awards announced
ETSU’s Sofia Markova named SoCon Player of the Year
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – ETSU’s Sofia Markova has been named the 2024 Southern Conference Women’s Tennis Player of the Year, as announced by the league on Wednesday. Furman’s Maeve Thornton was named the SoCon Freshman of the Year, while ETSU’s Ricky Rojas was named the league’s Coach of the Year for the fourth straight season. Samford’s Meredith Taylor earned the Sportsmanship Award.
Postseason balloting was conducted by the league’s eight head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own student-athletes. The first team features four doubles pairings due to a tie in voting.
Markova becomes ETSU’s third SoCon Player of the Year and second consecutive winner. The senior from Nuremberg, Germany, finished 14-7 at No. 1 singles, including a 7-0 mark in SoCon play, and is 14-7 at No. 2 doubles (7-0 SoCon), all with partner Alessandra Caceres. A three-time SoCon Player of the Week and the January SoCon Player of the Month this season, Markova earned first-team All-SoCon honors at both singles and doubles with Caceres. She enters this week’s SoCon Women’s Tennis Championship having won seven of her last ten singles and doubles matches. Markova and Caceres picked up a ranked doubles win this season on March 29, topping VCU’s Emma Valletta and Yelizaveta Karlova, ranked No. 78 nationally, by a 7-6 (7-4) score.
Thornton is Furman’s 14th SoCon Freshman of the Year in women’s tennis. The first-year player from Knoxville, Tennessee, went 9-10 overall in singles play this season, including an 8-9 mark at No. 2. Thornton also combined for a 9-10 doubles record with three different partners between Nos. 1 and 3, including a 7-0 SoCon record. Furman enters postseason play with a 10-12 overall mark. Sambola was one of two Paladins to earn SoCon All-Freshman Team honors, as she was joined by Macy Hitchcock on the squad.
Rojas has led ETSU to a league-best 14-7 overall mark and a 7-0 SoCon record, earning his fourth career SoCon Coach of the Year honor and the fifth for ETSU all-time. The Bucs played for a SoCon regular-season title in their final match of the regular season, winning a hotly contested 4-3 decision to fellow SoCon unbeaten Furman on Saturday. This was their first SoCon regular season title. In addition to first-team All-SoCon picks Markova and Fernanda Carvajal, Rojas directs a squad that saw three more players earn All-SoCon honors, with Daniela Rivera earning first team doubles honors and second-team No. 3 singles and Caceres earning first-team doubles honors, all-freshman honors, and second-team singles distinction at No. 5, while Jana Rovira also earned all-freshman recognition. Rojas led ETSU to a 4-3 win over No. 63 USF on March 12 and No. 57 VCU on March 29, good for the Bucs’ fourth and fifth win over a ranked opponent in the last five seasons.
Taylor becomes Samford’s second Sportsmanship Award winner, the first of which came in 2018. A sophomore from Vestavia Hills, Alabama, Taylor finished the season 4-6 overall and 3-4 in SoCon play this season.
SoCon second seed Furman put No. 1 singles player Sara Snyder and doubles tandem Macy Hitchcock and Ellie Schulson on the all-conference first teams, while freshman Maeve Thornton and Hitchcock earned a spot on the All-Freshman squad. Grace Thomas and Marrisa Penning earned second team honors at the No. 4 and No.6 spots, respectively, while doubles pairs Snyder and Jess Dawson earned the No. 2 doubles second team spot and Thornton and Grace Thomas got the No. 3 doubles second team honors.
Mercer’s Teodora Ristic earned first-team singles honors. Samford’s Alexis Lopez rounded out the singles second team, earning the No. 1 position. Chattanooga’s Rozalie Dohnalova earned first-team honors, while Madlen Orlova made the All-Freshman team. Western Carolina sophomore Jade Groen is on the second team at the No. 2 position.
Wofford’s Breda Brennan finished out the first team and No. 1 doubles pair Grace Agster and Lily Woods earned second team honors. Agster was also placed on the all-freshman team.
The SoCon Women’s Tennis Championship begins Thursday at 8:30 a.m. at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with all eight league teams vying for the title.
2024 Southern Conference Player of the Year
Sofia Markova, Sr., ETSU
2024 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year
Maeve Thornton, Furman
2024 Southern Conference Coach of the Year
Ricky Rojas, ETSU
2024 Southern Conference Sportsmanship Award
Meredith Taylor, So., Samford
2024 All-Southern Conference Women’s Tennis
First team
Singles
Sofia Markova, ETSU
Fernanda Carvajal, ETSU
Sara Snyder, Furman
Teodora Ristic, Mercer
Rozalie Dohnalova, Chattanooga
Breda Brennan, Wofford
Doubles
Fernanda Carvajal/Daniela Rivera, ETSU
Macy Hitchcock/ Ellie Schulson, Furman
Sofia Markova/Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
Second team
Singles (by position)
No. 1 – Alex Lopez, Samford
No. 2 – Jade Groen, Western Carolina
No. 3 – Daniela Rivera, ETSU
No. 4 – Grace Thomas, Furman
No. 5 – Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
No. 6 – Marissa Pennings, Furman
Doubles
No. 1 – Grace Agster/Lily Woods, Wofford
No. 2 – Jess Dawson/Sara Snyder, Furman
No. 3 – Maeve Thornton/Grace Thomas, Furman
All-Freshman
Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
Jana Rovira, ETSU
Maeve Thornton, Furman
Macy Hitchcock, Furman
Madlen Orlova, Chattanooga
Grace Agster, Wofford
Postseason balloting was conducted by the league’s eight head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own student-athletes. The first team features four doubles pairings due to a tie in voting.
Markova becomes ETSU’s third SoCon Player of the Year and second consecutive winner. The senior from Nuremberg, Germany, finished 14-7 at No. 1 singles, including a 7-0 mark in SoCon play, and is 14-7 at No. 2 doubles (7-0 SoCon), all with partner Alessandra Caceres. A three-time SoCon Player of the Week and the January SoCon Player of the Month this season, Markova earned first-team All-SoCon honors at both singles and doubles with Caceres. She enters this week’s SoCon Women’s Tennis Championship having won seven of her last ten singles and doubles matches. Markova and Caceres picked up a ranked doubles win this season on March 29, topping VCU’s Emma Valletta and Yelizaveta Karlova, ranked No. 78 nationally, by a 7-6 (7-4) score.
Thornton is Furman’s 14th SoCon Freshman of the Year in women’s tennis. The first-year player from Knoxville, Tennessee, went 9-10 overall in singles play this season, including an 8-9 mark at No. 2. Thornton also combined for a 9-10 doubles record with three different partners between Nos. 1 and 3, including a 7-0 SoCon record. Furman enters postseason play with a 10-12 overall mark. Sambola was one of two Paladins to earn SoCon All-Freshman Team honors, as she was joined by Macy Hitchcock on the squad.
Rojas has led ETSU to a league-best 14-7 overall mark and a 7-0 SoCon record, earning his fourth career SoCon Coach of the Year honor and the fifth for ETSU all-time. The Bucs played for a SoCon regular-season title in their final match of the regular season, winning a hotly contested 4-3 decision to fellow SoCon unbeaten Furman on Saturday. This was their first SoCon regular season title. In addition to first-team All-SoCon picks Markova and Fernanda Carvajal, Rojas directs a squad that saw three more players earn All-SoCon honors, with Daniela Rivera earning first team doubles honors and second-team No. 3 singles and Caceres earning first-team doubles honors, all-freshman honors, and second-team singles distinction at No. 5, while Jana Rovira also earned all-freshman recognition. Rojas led ETSU to a 4-3 win over No. 63 USF on March 12 and No. 57 VCU on March 29, good for the Bucs’ fourth and fifth win over a ranked opponent in the last five seasons.
Taylor becomes Samford’s second Sportsmanship Award winner, the first of which came in 2018. A sophomore from Vestavia Hills, Alabama, Taylor finished the season 4-6 overall and 3-4 in SoCon play this season.
SoCon second seed Furman put No. 1 singles player Sara Snyder and doubles tandem Macy Hitchcock and Ellie Schulson on the all-conference first teams, while freshman Maeve Thornton and Hitchcock earned a spot on the All-Freshman squad. Grace Thomas and Marrisa Penning earned second team honors at the No. 4 and No.6 spots, respectively, while doubles pairs Snyder and Jess Dawson earned the No. 2 doubles second team spot and Thornton and Grace Thomas got the No. 3 doubles second team honors.
Mercer’s Teodora Ristic earned first-team singles honors. Samford’s Alexis Lopez rounded out the singles second team, earning the No. 1 position. Chattanooga’s Rozalie Dohnalova earned first-team honors, while Madlen Orlova made the All-Freshman team. Western Carolina sophomore Jade Groen is on the second team at the No. 2 position.
Wofford’s Breda Brennan finished out the first team and No. 1 doubles pair Grace Agster and Lily Woods earned second team honors. Agster was also placed on the all-freshman team.
The SoCon Women’s Tennis Championship begins Thursday at 8:30 a.m. at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with all eight league teams vying for the title.
2024 Southern Conference Player of the Year
Sofia Markova, Sr., ETSU
2024 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year
Maeve Thornton, Furman
2024 Southern Conference Coach of the Year
Ricky Rojas, ETSU
2024 Southern Conference Sportsmanship Award
Meredith Taylor, So., Samford
2024 All-Southern Conference Women’s Tennis
First team
Singles
Sofia Markova, ETSU
Fernanda Carvajal, ETSU
Sara Snyder, Furman
Teodora Ristic, Mercer
Rozalie Dohnalova, Chattanooga
Breda Brennan, Wofford
Doubles
Fernanda Carvajal/Daniela Rivera, ETSU
Macy Hitchcock/ Ellie Schulson, Furman
Sofia Markova/Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
Second team
Singles (by position)
No. 1 – Alex Lopez, Samford
No. 2 – Jade Groen, Western Carolina
No. 3 – Daniela Rivera, ETSU
No. 4 – Grace Thomas, Furman
No. 5 – Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
No. 6 – Marissa Pennings, Furman
Doubles
No. 1 – Grace Agster/Lily Woods, Wofford
No. 2 – Jess Dawson/Sara Snyder, Furman
No. 3 – Maeve Thornton/Grace Thomas, Furman
All-Freshman
Alessandra Caceres, ETSU
Jana Rovira, ETSU
Maeve Thornton, Furman
Macy Hitchcock, Furman
Madlen Orlova, Chattanooga
Grace Agster, Wofford