Linares Tabbed Big 12 Freshman of the Year; Three Cats Named All-Big 12
May 10, 2018 | Tennis
MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State's Maria Linares was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year, as she, along with Margot Decker and Carolina Costamagna, were each selected to the All-Big 12 Women's Tennis teams Thursday.
Linares, a freshman from Maracay, Venezuela, is the first Wildcat to take home freshman-of-the-year honors since Petra Niedermayerova did so in 2011 and is just the third to ever win the award.
Additionally, Linares was also selected to the All-Big 12 Second and All-Freshman teams. She was joined by Decker on both squads while Decker and Costamagna were voted to second-team All-Big 12 in doubles.
The trio of Cats are the first all-conference honorees the program has seen since the 2014 season and the first time multiple Wildcats earned All-Big 12 accolades since 2013.
Linares posted a team-best 13-6 singles record during the spring season, playing primarily at the No. 2 spot in the Wildcats' lineup, and was named Big 12 Player of the Week on February 27.
Decker occupied the top spot in K-State's lineup during her freshman campaign, collecting four victories against ranked opponents in singles play. The native of Blodelsheim, France, had a team-high six three-set victories, including a clinching, come-from-behind victory to defeat 28th-ranked Baylor on March 13.
Costamagna and Decker, the team's No. 1 doubles tandem, turned in a team-high 10 doubles victories during the dual campaign. The duo is the first K-State doubles pairing to be named All-Big 12 since Niedermayerova and Karla Bonacic in 2013.
The Wildcats, under fourth-year head coach Danielle Steinberg, earned their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 2003 and their fourth postseason appearance in program history.
K-State (14-10) will travel to Evanston, Illinois, to face Kentucky (14-10), Friday, May 11 at 12 p.m., in the Round of 64 at Vandy Christie Tennis Center. The winner will advance to play the winner of pod-host Northwestern and Buffalo on Saturday, May 12.
The Wildcats finished the regular season tied for the third-highest win total in program history and most since 2011-12 season. The squad finished the regular season as the 42nd-ranked team in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings.
The NCAA Championship website can be found here, and fans can follow live stats on kstatesports.com and on the team's official Twitter page @KStateTEN.
All-Big 12 Women's Tennis Awards
Coach of the Year: Howard Joffe, Texas
Player of the Year: Bianca Turati, Texas
Newcomer of the Year: Despoina Vogasari, Kansas
Freshman of the Year: Maria Linares, K-State
Second Team - Singles
Camilla Abbate, Baylor, So.
Margot Decker, K-State, Fr.
Maria Linares, K-State, Fr.
Marina Guinart, Oklahoma State, Jr.
Aleksa Cveticanin, TCU, Fr.
Marie Norris, TCU, Jr.
Petra Granic, Texas, So.
Sabrina Federici, Texas Tech, Sr.
Second Team - Doubles
Anastasia Rychagova, Jr. / Nina Khmelnitckaia, Jr., Kansas
Despoina Vogasari, Sr. / Maria Toran Ribes, So., Kansas
Carolina Costamagna, Sr. / Margot Decker, Fr., K-State
Jasmine Asghar, So. / Christiana Brigante, Sr., Oklahoma
Marina Guinart, Jr. / Katarina Stresnakova, Jr., Oklahoma State
Anna Turati, So. / Bianca Turati, So., Texas
All-Freshman Team
Liva Kraus, Baylor
Kristiana Sorokolet, Baylor
Margot Decker, K-State
Maria Linares, K-State
Aleksa Cveticanin, TCU
Bojana Markovic, Texas
Linares, a freshman from Maracay, Venezuela, is the first Wildcat to take home freshman-of-the-year honors since Petra Niedermayerova did so in 2011 and is just the third to ever win the award.
Additionally, Linares was also selected to the All-Big 12 Second and All-Freshman teams. She was joined by Decker on both squads while Decker and Costamagna were voted to second-team All-Big 12 in doubles.
The trio of Cats are the first all-conference honorees the program has seen since the 2014 season and the first time multiple Wildcats earned All-Big 12 accolades since 2013.
Linares posted a team-best 13-6 singles record during the spring season, playing primarily at the No. 2 spot in the Wildcats' lineup, and was named Big 12 Player of the Week on February 27.
Decker occupied the top spot in K-State's lineup during her freshman campaign, collecting four victories against ranked opponents in singles play. The native of Blodelsheim, France, had a team-high six three-set victories, including a clinching, come-from-behind victory to defeat 28th-ranked Baylor on March 13.
Costamagna and Decker, the team's No. 1 doubles tandem, turned in a team-high 10 doubles victories during the dual campaign. The duo is the first K-State doubles pairing to be named All-Big 12 since Niedermayerova and Karla Bonacic in 2013.
The Wildcats, under fourth-year head coach Danielle Steinberg, earned their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 2003 and their fourth postseason appearance in program history.
K-State (14-10) will travel to Evanston, Illinois, to face Kentucky (14-10), Friday, May 11 at 12 p.m., in the Round of 64 at Vandy Christie Tennis Center. The winner will advance to play the winner of pod-host Northwestern and Buffalo on Saturday, May 12.
The Wildcats finished the regular season tied for the third-highest win total in program history and most since 2011-12 season. The squad finished the regular season as the 42nd-ranked team in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings.
The NCAA Championship website can be found here, and fans can follow live stats on kstatesports.com and on the team's official Twitter page @KStateTEN.
All-Big 12 Women's Tennis Awards
Coach of the Year: Howard Joffe, Texas
Player of the Year: Bianca Turati, Texas
Newcomer of the Year: Despoina Vogasari, Kansas
Freshman of the Year: Maria Linares, K-State
Second Team - Singles
Camilla Abbate, Baylor, So.
Margot Decker, K-State, Fr.
Maria Linares, K-State, Fr.
Marina Guinart, Oklahoma State, Jr.
Aleksa Cveticanin, TCU, Fr.
Marie Norris, TCU, Jr.
Petra Granic, Texas, So.
Sabrina Federici, Texas Tech, Sr.
Second Team - Doubles
Anastasia Rychagova, Jr. / Nina Khmelnitckaia, Jr., Kansas
Despoina Vogasari, Sr. / Maria Toran Ribes, So., Kansas
Carolina Costamagna, Sr. / Margot Decker, Fr., K-State
Jasmine Asghar, So. / Christiana Brigante, Sr., Oklahoma
Marina Guinart, Jr. / Katarina Stresnakova, Jr., Oklahoma State
Anna Turati, So. / Bianca Turati, So., Texas
All-Freshman Team
Liva Kraus, Baylor
Kristiana Sorokolet, Baylor
Margot Decker, K-State
Maria Linares, K-State
Aleksa Cveticanin, TCU
Bojana Markovic, Texas
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