Women's tennis player Maria Bessmertnaya has been selected as this week's WIU Hampton Inn Scholar Athlete of the Week on Oct. 3.
Over the weekend, Bessmertnaya helped Western to two 7-0 victories over Knox College and Judson University. Against Knox, Bessmertnaya teamed up with Nicole Jones for a 6-1 victory in No. 3 doubles. In No. 4 singles, Bessmertnaya beat her opponent 6-1, 6-0.
Against Judson, she and Jones won 8-3 in No. 3 doubles. In singles play, she picked up a 6-0, 6-0 sweep.
The Pyatigorsk, Russia, native boasts a 4.0 GPA and is majoring in pre-business and accounting. Bessmertnaya and the rest of the women's tennis team will be back in action on Oct. 7-8 at the Warhawk Invitational.