The Youngstown State women's tennis team will look to defend their Horizon League postseason championship when the 2026 event begins on Friday at the Lindner Family Tennis Center just north of Cincinnati.
Heading into the championships, the Penguins are the No. 3 seed and will face No. 6 seed, Northern Kentucky, in the quarterfinals on Friday. First serve set for 1:30 p.m.
Despite falling to Oakland, 4-3, in its regular-season finale, Youngstown State earned a share of the Horizon League regular-season title alongside Oakland, Milwaukee and Cleveland State.
The last time the two sides met, YSU earned a 6-1 victory over NKU at the YSU Indoor Tennis Center on April 12. In that matchup, the Penguins secured the doubles points with wins at No. 1 and No. 3, while the Norse's lone victory came at No. 5 singles.
This marks the first postseason meeting between the two programs. With a win, YSU would advance to the semifinals for the fifth straight season and face No. 2-seeded Milwaukee on Saturday.
Regular Season Recap
The Penguins finished the regular season with a 3-2 conference record and 10-11 overall mark. YSU dropped its first two contests to West Virginia and Eastern Michigan on Jan. 17 and 23, respectively, before winning three straight to close out January.
To open February, the Penguins traveled to Las Vegas, where they went 2-1, with their only loss coming to future Mountain West regular-season champions, UNLV. The team entered Horizon League play riding a two-match winning streak and opened conference play with a 4-3 home win over Cleveland State. YSU went on to win all of its league matches at the YSU Indoor Tennis Center, but it dropped both Horizon League away matches.
Horizon League Numbers
In five Horizon League matches this spring, the No. 3 position in both singles and doubles went undefeated. The pairing of Lorena Cedeno and Sarah Partida Garcia went 3-0 in doubles play, while Yeseniia Ovcharova posted a 5-0 record in singles. Overall, the Penguins went 18-12 in singles and 7-4 in doubles in Horizon League play.
Overall Numbers
Hanna Telzynska leads the team with 18 singles victories, with Ovcharova close behind with 17. Cedeno and Partida Garcia also reached double-digit singles wins this season.
Postseason Run
The Penguins have qualified for the Horizon League Tournament every season since 2018-19. During that span, YSU has won three championship matches and holds a 7-2 postseason record. From 2014 to 2018, the Penguins went 12-0 in tournament play and captured four consecutive titles. The Guins have won three of the last four championships, including last year's in Ann Arbor, Mich.
This marks the first time since 1996 that the tournament will be held in Ohio and the first time it will be hosted in the Queen City. YSU ranks second among schools with eight team championships. Diane Piranda, Partida Garcia and Telzynska will all make their postseason debuts for the Penguins on Friday.
2025 Postseason Recap
Last season, the Penguins earned the No. 2 seed after posting a 5-1 record in Horizon League play. With a first-round bye, YSU opened the tournament in the semifinals against No. 6 seeded Milwaukee and secured a 4-0 victory. The Penguins then advanced to the championship, where they upset No. 1-seeded Cleveland State to capture their eighth Horizon League title.
