The UCF women’s tennis team has maintained its position at No. 24 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings, which were released on Wednesday. This follows a strong start to the season at the USTA National Campus.
The Knights began their 2026 dual-match campaign with a 4-1 win over South Florida on Sunday, January 18. Despite losing the doubles point, UCF responded by winning four consecutive singles matches and extended its home winning streak to 14.
A weather delay of nearly two hours interrupted play after doubles, but UCF returned to secure victories in singles. Daryna Shoshyna led with a 6-0, 6-1 win against Melisa Senli. Jantje Tilbuerger followed with a 6-3, 6-2 result over Margherita Marcon on court three. Jade Psonka contributed another point by defeating Amelie Drukerova 6-2, 6-3 on court six. Marina Gatell clinched the match for UCF with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Francesca Miglio on court four.
UCF is one of four Big 12 programs ranked in the top 25 this week. The others are Oklahoma State (No.10), Texas Tech (No.21), and Baylor (No.25).
Looking ahead, UCF will travel to Baton Rouge for ITA Kickoff Weekend at the LSU Tennis Complex. The Knights are scheduled to face No.18 UCLA on Saturday, January 24; if they win, they will advance to play either Marshall or host No.5 LSU.
Big 12 conference play begins for UCF with home matches against BYU on Thursday, February 26 and Utah on Saturday, February 28.
“I am proud of how our team responded after dropping the doubles point,” said Bryan Koniecko, head coach of UFC Knights Women’s Tennis. “Our players showed resilience and determination in singles play.”
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