Women’s Tennis Hosts No. 2 Ohio State and St. Bonaventure at the Indoor Tennis Center on Sunday

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State women’s tennis begins Big Ten play against No. 2 Ohio State in addition to a match with St. Bonaventure in its final doubleheader of the spring on Sunday at the Indoor Tennis Center.  

The Nittany Lions are scheduled for an 11 a.m. start against the Buckeyes, which also serves as the first official conference match of the Big Ten season, before playing the Bonnies at 4 p.m. 

Penn State’s 5-0 start to 2026 is the best opening to a season since 2013 when the Blue & White opened the season with a 9-0 mark.

 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 

• Penn State cruised to two dominant victories on February 8 with a 7-0 triumph over Mercyhurst and a 4-0 victory against Mount St. Mary’s. The Blue & White did not concede a single set in either match. 

• The Nittany Lions went 6-0 in doubles across both matches with the team of Jordina Cegarra and Patricia Grigoras picking up two court one victories. Ansley Cox and Maria Daciana Ciubotaru paired for a doubles win against Mercyhurst and then competed alongside Maelie Monfils and Brianna Baldi for wins in the Mount St. Mary’s contest. 

• Katerina Dimitrova and Kate Zink earned a 6-0 doubles triumph against Mercyhurst on court three. The juniors won in singles against the Lakers with Dimitrova competing on court five and Zink playing from the six spot. For both, it was the first doubles and singles victories in dual matches of their collegiate careers. 

• Grigoras secured a court one singles triumph over Mercyhurst before winning by walkover on court two against Mount St. Mary’s. Cegarra was another two-time singles winner, notching victories on courts four and five. 

• Ciubotaru on court two and Cox on court three registered singles wins against Mercyhurst, while Baldi got one of her own on court three against the Mount. 

ACROSS THE NET 

OHIO STATE 

• No. 2 Ohio State defeated No. 8 NC State, 5-2, on Friday to begin the weekend to move to 6-1 on the season.  

• Before that, the Buckeyes reached the championship match at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, taking down No. 7 Duke, No. 3 North Carolina and No. 2 Texas A&M along the way. They ultimately fell to No. 1 Georgia in a 4-3 decision in the title match. 

• To qualify for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, Ohio State bested Iowa and No. 15 Virginia by 4-0 margins during ITA Kickoff Weekend, which they hosted in Columbus. 

• Four Buckeyes are ranked in singles: No. 3 Luciana Perry, No. 13 Teah Chavez, No. 52 Nao Nishino and No. 114 Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev.  

• The team boasts five ranked doubles pairs: No. 13 Hephzibah Oluwadare and Chavez, No. 36 Perry and Chavez, No. 55 Flora Johnson and Perry, No. 60 Audrey Spencer and Nishino and No. 89 Johnson and Nishino. 

ST. BONAVENTURE

• St. Bonaventure enters the weekend with a 0-7 record with a match on the road against Cleveland State on Saturday before heading east to Happy Valley.  

• Two of the Bonnies’ defeats came in the fall at the UB Hidden Duals against Niagara and Buffalo.  

• St. Bonaventure most recently dropped a 4-3 decision against Siena on February 8. The team won the doubles point and collected wins on courts two and six. It was the first time this spring the Bonnies registered points in a dual match after four consecutive shutout losses. 

• Sienna Smith competes in tandem with Sara Montano Parada on court one for doubles and plays on court two in singles.  

SERIES HISTORY 

OHIO STATE 

• Ohio State is Penn State’s most played opponent all-time with Sunday’s matchup marking the 60th meeting between the border state rivals. 

• The Buckeyes hold a 43-16 advantage in the series, which dates back to 1967.  

• The last Penn State victory came in 2012, a 4-3 result in Happy Valley. 

ST. BONAVENTURE

• Penn State owns a 4-0 record against St. Bonaventure in a series that began in 1990. 

• A season ago, the Blue & White beat the Bonnies 7-0. Current Nittany Lions Olivia Dorner, Maiko Uchijima, Cegarra, Ciubotaru and Grigoras all picked up victories in singles, doubles or both.