Contact: Alex Mielcarz, Athletics Communication Graduate Assistant, ajmielcarz@noctrl.edu

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (March 31, 2026) – For the seventh time in her illustrious career, Abigail Penados has been named the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin's Player of the Week. Penados turned in a perfect weekend for the North Central women's tennis program from the number one slot in both singles and doubles en route to her program record seventh award.

Penados, who last earned CCIW weekly honors on October 8 this past fall, has far and away the most CCIW Player of the Week Awards in program history. The next closest is Natalie Bassett, who accrued four throughout her playing years.

She now owns the second-most Player of the Week wins in the history of the CCIW. Penados trails only Kim Sawyer of Augustana, who earned the distinction eight times during her career between 2010 and 2013.

Penados, a senior hailing from Morton Grove, Illinois, went 2-0 in Sunday's match against No. 37 Grinnell College, a match the Cardinals would ultimately lose 5-2.

In doubles, Penados and her partner, Kensington Payne, won in the top slot of the lineup card 6-3, becoming 14-3 as a team on the season and 13-2 in dual contests, all from the number one spot.

Penados then dropped the opening set of her singles match 6-3, but bounced back to win the second set 6-2 and the third by the same score to pull off a reverse sweep and clinch one of North Central's two lone points in the match.

The Cardinals travel north to Madison, Wisconsin, this weekend to take part in the Midwest Invitational on Friday and Saturday.