BRENTWOOD, Tenn. - In a vote of Ohio Valley Conference head women's tennis coaches, SIUE has been selected as the No. 2 team preseason for the 2026 season.

SIUE earned three first-place votes and trailed only defending OVC tournament champion Bryant.

The OVC also noted three players in the preseason poll. Stefaniya Anikina and Margaux Guibal Britt were among the league's returning All-OVC selections. Elena Palioura, who is coming off winning the OVC's first Singles Player of the Week honors, was tabbed a 2026 OVC Player to Watch.

The top two teams in the OVC standings, as determined by conference match winning percentage, will earn the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds for the tournament. Seeds three through seven will be determined by ITA ranking.

The season will conclude with the 2026 OVC Tennis Championships (April 17-19) at the Dwight Davis Tennis Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
 
2026 OVC Tennis Predicted Order of Finish
1. Bryant (4) – 34
2. SIUE (3) – 31
3. Southeast Missouri – 25
4. Western Illinois – 24
5. Lindenwood – 15
6. Southern Indiana – 11
7. Tennessee State – 7
*Bryant will compete at the conference championships but will not play a conference schedule in 2026.
 
Returning 2025 All-OVC Selections
Singles
Yahli Noy, Jr., Bryant
Natalia Vela, Sr.,Bryant
Fabiana Labrador, Jr., Lindenwood
Stefaniya Anikina, Jr., SIUE
Margaux Guibal Britt, Sr., SIUE
Antonia Ferrarini, Jr., Southern Indiana
Richardlyne Francois, Jr., Western Illinois
Chloe Routier, Jr., Western Illinois
 
Doubles
Natalia Vela / Maria Jose Hernandez Diaz, Jr., Bryant
Stefaniya Anikina, SIUE

2026 OVC Players to Watch 
Laura Stypula, Fr., Bryant
Megan Caffin, So., Lindenwood
Sofiya Zemtsova, Jr., Southeast Missouri
Elena Palioura, So., SIUE
Sofia Davidoff, Jr., Southern Indiana
Jovana Nikolic, Sr., Tennessee State
Nour Gueblaoui, Sr., Western Illinois