RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) announced on Friday that The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) men's tennis junior Emilien Burnel has been selected as the TicketSmarter WAC Men's Tennis Singles Player of the Week. 
 
Burnel went 2-0 playing in the No. 1 singles flight for UTRGV. On Friday, he earned an impressive, hard-fought 7-6 (3), 7-5 win over BYU's Wally Thayne to help the Vaqueros defeat the Cougars in a tight 4-3 match. He followed that up with a dominant 7-5, 6-3 win over rival Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Avery Zavala. In both matches, Burnel controlled the pace and showcased his athleticism by covering all corners of the court well and delivering smart shots. 
 
This is Burnel's third singles honor of the spring season and sixth WAC recognition in his first season with UTRGV. He leads the Vaqueros with an 8-6 record with seven of those victories coming in the No. 1 flight. 
 
Burnel and the Vaqueros (5-9) have four matches in California coming up in the next five days, beginning Saturday with a 1 p.m. (CT) match against Hawai'I at UC Davis' Marya Welch Tennis Center.   

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