DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Extends Contract of Women's Tennis Head Coach Marisa Arce Through 2030
6/30/2026 12:30:00 PM | WOMEN'S TENNIS
Arce has led the Blue Demons to four BIG EAST title matches in seven seasons
CHICAGO – DePaul women's tennis head coach Marisa Arce has signed a contract extension that will keep her with the Blue Demons through June of 2030, Senior Vice President and Director of Athletics DeWayne Peevy announced on Tuesday.
Arce enters her eighth season in 2026-27 having guided the Blue Demons to four BIG EAST Championship match appearances in seven years at the helm. In that span, eight different Blue Demons have accounted for 12 All-BIG EAST selections.
DePaul entered the 2025-26 season with the youngest squad of Arce's tenure and turned in arguably its best season under her leadership, going 6-1 in BIG EAST play and advancing to the BIG EAST Championship match before falling to Xavier. The Blue Demons closed the year ranked eighth in the ITA Midwest Regional rankings, the top finish among mid-major programs in the region, with Arce also serving as the ITA Midwest Region Committee Chair for 2025-26.
Junior Sasha Stula authored the best singles season by a DePaul player in a decade, earning unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team honors and becoming the first Blue Demon to crack the regional top-20 singles rankings since their inception. Senior Hannah Smith closed her career with nearly 60 singles wins, more than 80 doubles wins, and a 2025 All-BIG EAST First Team selection.
The Blue Demons also reached the BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinals in 2024-25, with the doubles tandem of Smith and Eva Goncharov climbing as high as No. 49 in the national ITA rankings, the program's best ranking achieved that season. This success continued a run of standout years under Arce, none more notable than 2023-24. In her fifth season at the helm, DePaul posted a 17-8 record, its most wins since the 2016-17 campaign, while going 7-1 both at home and in BIG EAST play. The Blue Demons won 10 of their final 12 matches and advanced to the BIG EAST Championship match for the ninth time in 10 seasons, finishing the year ranked eighth in the Midwest by the ITA. Smith earned All-BIG EAST First Team honors, Eleanor Nobbs collected a Second Team nod, and graduate student Emily Casati put together a 17-9 singles campaign that included a 14-match winning streak.
Since taking over the program, Arce has compiled a 77-61 record in dual matches and established DePaul as a perennial BIG EAST contender, amassing a 31-12 mark against league opponents.
Her tenure has also been defined by consistent success in the classroom, with the program winning the ITA Team Academic Award in 18 consecutive seasons. Of the 50 student-athletes Arce has coached at DePaul, 49 have earned Scholar-Athlete honors, and her tenure has also produced the program's first CoSIDA Academic All-America selection and BIG EAST Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year in Aspasia Avgeri.
Prior to DePaul, Arce led IU Indy (formerly IUPUI) for four seasons, highlighted by a 2017 Summit League Tournament appearance, and served two seasons as an assistant at Princeton, where the Tigers won back-to-back Ivy League titles in 2014 and 2015. A standout player at Illinois, Arce finished her career ranked second all-time in program history in doubles wins.
FOLLOW THE BLUE DEMONS
For all the latest information on DePaul Women's Tennis, visit DePaulBlueDemons.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Blue Demons on Twitter and Instagram.
Arce enters her eighth season in 2026-27 having guided the Blue Demons to four BIG EAST Championship match appearances in seven years at the helm. In that span, eight different Blue Demons have accounted for 12 All-BIG EAST selections.
DePaul entered the 2025-26 season with the youngest squad of Arce's tenure and turned in arguably its best season under her leadership, going 6-1 in BIG EAST play and advancing to the BIG EAST Championship match before falling to Xavier. The Blue Demons closed the year ranked eighth in the ITA Midwest Regional rankings, the top finish among mid-major programs in the region, with Arce also serving as the ITA Midwest Region Committee Chair for 2025-26.
Junior Sasha Stula authored the best singles season by a DePaul player in a decade, earning unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team honors and becoming the first Blue Demon to crack the regional top-20 singles rankings since their inception. Senior Hannah Smith closed her career with nearly 60 singles wins, more than 80 doubles wins, and a 2025 All-BIG EAST First Team selection.
The Blue Demons also reached the BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinals in 2024-25, with the doubles tandem of Smith and Eva Goncharov climbing as high as No. 49 in the national ITA rankings, the program's best ranking achieved that season. This success continued a run of standout years under Arce, none more notable than 2023-24. In her fifth season at the helm, DePaul posted a 17-8 record, its most wins since the 2016-17 campaign, while going 7-1 both at home and in BIG EAST play. The Blue Demons won 10 of their final 12 matches and advanced to the BIG EAST Championship match for the ninth time in 10 seasons, finishing the year ranked eighth in the Midwest by the ITA. Smith earned All-BIG EAST First Team honors, Eleanor Nobbs collected a Second Team nod, and graduate student Emily Casati put together a 17-9 singles campaign that included a 14-match winning streak.
Since taking over the program, Arce has compiled a 77-61 record in dual matches and established DePaul as a perennial BIG EAST contender, amassing a 31-12 mark against league opponents.
Her tenure has also been defined by consistent success in the classroom, with the program winning the ITA Team Academic Award in 18 consecutive seasons. Of the 50 student-athletes Arce has coached at DePaul, 49 have earned Scholar-Athlete honors, and her tenure has also produced the program's first CoSIDA Academic All-America selection and BIG EAST Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year in Aspasia Avgeri.
Prior to DePaul, Arce led IU Indy (formerly IUPUI) for four seasons, highlighted by a 2017 Summit League Tournament appearance, and served two seasons as an assistant at Princeton, where the Tigers won back-to-back Ivy League titles in 2014 and 2015. A standout player at Illinois, Arce finished her career ranked second all-time in program history in doubles wins.
FOLLOW THE BLUE DEMONS
For all the latest information on DePaul Women's Tennis, visit DePaulBlueDemons.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Blue Demons on Twitter and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
/ WOMEN'S TENNIS
/ WOMEN'S TENNIS
/ WOMEN'S TENNIS
/ WOMEN'S TENNIS
Tuesday, June 02
Thursday, August 31
Thursday, August 31
Tuesday, May 02