EVANSVILLE, Ind.- University of Southern Indiana Women's Tennis was predicted to finish sixth in the Ohio Valley Conference in the 2026 Predicted Order of Finish as voted on by head coaches.
 
After winning the 2025 OVC Championship, Bryant University claims the number one spot on the preseason poll, earning a total of 34 total votes, and four first-place votes. Last season marked Bryant's first year as a member of the OVC, where it managed to upset the regular-season champions, Southeast Missouri State University, 4-2 in the final.
 
Bryant will not compete in any conference games during the 2026 regular season, but will compete in the conference championship, which takes place on April 17-19 at the Dwight Davis Tennis Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Seeding for the tournament will be determined by the top two teams in the OVC standings, as determined by conference match winning percentage, who will earn the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds for the tournament. Seeds three through eight will be determined by ITA ranking.
 
Taking the second-place spot in the poll was Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville with three first-place votes and 31 total. SEMO came in third place with 25 votes, followed by Western Illinois University with 24 points in fourth. Lindenwood University took fifth with 15 points, and USI came in sixth with 11 points. Tennessee State University rounded out the league with seven points in seventh place.
 
The Screaming Eagles are coming off a tough 2025 season, finishing 1-14 for the year. However, their victory over conference opponent Eastern Illinois University ensured their seven-seed slot in the OVC Championship Tournament.
 
USI returns one 2025 All-OVC Selection in junior Antonia Ferrarini, who has made a Second-Team selection in both of her seasons as an Eagle. She finished her 2025 season with three singles victories and five doubles wins. Fellow junior Sofia Davidoff was selected as USI's Player to Watch on the preseason poll. Davidoff led the Eagles in singles wins and tied for the most doubles victories.

The Screaming Eagles kick off their spring season on January 30^th, hosting Austin Peay State University at the Evansville Tennis Center at 2 p.m. For updates on the 2026 WTEN season, fans can follow USI Athletics on Facebook, Instagram, and X for game coverage, as well as online at usiscreamingeagles.com.