Women's Tennis | April 24
DeKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University women's tennis program and head coach
Eric Burns have announced the signing of incoming freshman Paulina Masherava. The Illinois native joins the current class of Layla Notta, Iben Storkaas and Natalia Varela Herrera, who were announced in November.
"I'm very excited to have Paulina join our team and finish off our recruiting class. She has tremendous upside and I believe she will be a player who really develops in our program," said Burns. "It's great to be able to bring in top players from Illinois and with her state championship experience, she is a great addition for our team."
Masherava is a three-star recruit on TennisRecruiting.net and comes to DeKalb from Vernon Hills High School from nearby Vernon Hills, Ill. With a high ranking of No. 8 in the state of Illinois and 219 in the 2026 national class, Masherava has a UTR rating high of 7.69.
Masherava joins NIU following a stellar high school career that included a 27-0 record and 1A Illinois State Doubles Champion in 2025, helping Vernon Hills finish fourth in Team State. A three-time All-State select, Masherava finished third in 16 doubles at the USTA Midwest Closed-Grand Rapids in 2024.
The Huskies will be replacing one of the most influential classes in program history with the outgoing senior class in
Jenna Horne,
Nataly Ninova and
Isabella Righi. The 2025-26 sophomore class combined for 36 singles victories this spring.
