SAN BRUNO, Calif. — No. 6 Pepperdine women's tennis has swept the weekly West Coast Conference (WCC) awards for the second straight week and fifth time this season, announced today by the conference.
Chantal Sauvant received WCC Singles Player of the Week,
Sonja Zhiyenbayeva was named WCC Freshman of the Week while
Živa Falkner and Zhiyenbayeva earned WCC Doubles Team of the Week.
The trio helped the Waves to a 7-0 defeat over Cal Poly this past week to go along with a narrow 4-3 defeat to No. 14 NC State.
Sauvant earned a pair of singles wins on the week at the No. 4 position for the Waves, claiming her second WCC Singles Player of the Week award of the season. Her previous win came on February 3rd. Sauvant picked up her first career ranked singles win against No. 14 NC State, defeating No. 51 Lavinia Tanasie in two sets (6-4, 7-6). Her win evened up the match against the Wolfpack at 3-3. She went on to earn a 6-3, 6-0 win on court four against Cal Poly, contributing to Pepperdine's 7-0 win. Sauvant has now won four straight singles matches and sits at 8-4 on the season.
Zhiyenbayeva takes home WCC Freshman of the Week for the seventh time this season, after earning a top-two doubles ranked victory to go along with a singles win over Cal Poly. At the No. 1 doubles position against No. 14 NC State, Zhiyenbayeva and Falkner earned a 6-3 win over No. 2 Victoria Osuigwe/Gabrielle Broadfoot. Zhiyenbayeva went on to pick up a 6-1, 6-4 win at the No. 2 singles position over Cal Poly, moving her to 11-2 on the dual match season in singles.
Falkner and Zhiyenbayeva claim their third WCC Doubles Team of the Week recognition as a pair this season. The duo improved to 7-1 on the season at the No. 1 position, earning their highest ranked win of the campaign over NC State's No. 2 Victoria Osuigwe/Gabrielle Broadfoot (6-3). Currently ranked No. 15 in the ITA doubles rankings, the tandem has now won five straight matches and sits at 4-0 on the season against fellow ranked duos.
The Waves return to the courts Sunday, hosting Portland for a WCC contest slated for noon from Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center.
West Coast Conference Weekly Awards (March 23, 2026)
Singles Player: Chantal Sauvant, Pepperdine, Gr.
Freshman: Sonja Zhiyenbayeva, Pepperdine, Fr.
Doubles Team: Živa Falkner/
Sonja Zhiyenbayeva, Pepperdine, Tr./Fr.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S TENNIS
Pepperdine women's tennis has been a consistent powerhouse in the collegiate scene, reaching 40 NCAA Tournaments since 1982 including 28 straight appearances. Since 2018, the program has seen three national runner-ups between both singles and doubles while reaching an NCAA Regional as a team eight times in the past nine tournaments. The success at the conference level has been paramount with 33 WCC Championships including an active streak of 11 consecutive conference titles. With its 24 total All-Americans, the program has also consistently sent players to the pro circuit following their time in Malibu.
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