Brentwood, TN – Six Austin Peay State University (APSU) women’s tennis greats were named to the Ohio Valley Conference 75th Anniversary Women’s Tennis Team.
The 2022-23 academic year marked the 75th anniversary of the Ohio Valley Conference.
As part of the celebration of the league’s storied accomplishments, a committee working with current and former schools captured the “best-of-the-best” in each sport and marked the top athletes in league history with the 75th Anniversary Teams across all OVC sports.
T.J. Kleynhans | 1983-86
A two-time OVC Player of the Year and OVC Singles Champion, Kleynhans helped lead Austin Peay to its first OVC title in 1986. The championship also was the first for any women’s team at APSU.
Kleynhans won her second-straight OVC Singles Championship during her senior season after going 25-5 while exclusively playing the No. 1 position. She also won the OVC Doubles Championship alongside doubles partner Cathy Lammond, after the duo combined for a 24-1 record during the 1986 season.
Kleynhans posted a 65-17 career singles record and was inducted into the Austin Peay Athletics Hall of Fame in 1994.
Shannon Peters | 1988-91
At the time of her induction into the Austin Peay Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996, Shannon Peters was unanimously regarded as the best player in OVC history.
Peters never lost an OVC singles match during her career – and allowed less than 1.5 games per match – helping lead the Govs to the 1988 and 1989 OVC Championship. The four-time All-OVC selection also captured eight first-place OVC medals during her time in Clarksville.
Peters combined for a 41-0 singles record as a junior and senior while exclusively playing the No. 1 position. The Sydney, Australia native ended her collegiate career with a 64-2 singles record and 57-3 mark in doubles. Her illustrious singles mark also included an OVC-record 56-match winning streak.
Susan Sheather | 1991-94
Sheather was one of the most dominant players in the early 1990s, combining to win five OVC Singles and Doubles titles in her four-year career.
After winning the OVC No. 2 Singles and No. 2 Doubles Championships as a freshman, Sheather was elevated to the No. 1 position after Peters graduated in 1992. There, she posted a 16-2 record as a sophomore, including 7-0 mark in OVC play, earning All-OVC honors for the second-straight season, including her first of two OVC player o the Year awards.
Sheather finished her career with a 64-11 singles record, including 46-9 from the No. 1 position and 23-2 in OVC play. She also tallied a 57-9 career doubles record, with a 28-2 mark in league play.
Vanja Tomic | 2010-12
After transferring from Lindsey Wilson following her freshman season, Tomic led the APSU Govs with an 18-2 singles record which included a season-ending 17-match winning streak, earning her OVC Player of the Year honors. She and doubles teammate Mariana Pagan also posted a 16-3 record in doubles play, including an 8-1 mark in OVC action.
Tomic led the Govs to a second-place finish in the regular season, before helping the Govs win the OVC Tournament title and secure their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2003.
A 2020 Austin Peay State University Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, Tomic combined for a 52-11 singles record during her three-year career for the red and white.
Claudia Yanes Garcia | 2015-19
Claudia burst onto the scene during her first year in Clarksville, earning First Team All-OVC honors after going 13-2 in singles play, including 8-1 against conference opponents as a freshman in 2016. She and doubles partner Brittney Covington also won a team-best five matches in league action that season.
The Los Realejos, Spain native earned her second-straight First Team honor after going 12-2 in singles while exclusively playing the No. 2 position, finishing the season winning nine of her final 10 matches.
After being injured in the first match of her junior season, Claudia came back in OVC play where she won three-of-four matches, including in the OVC title match against Eastern Kentucky.
In her final season, Claudia posted a 17-3 record in singles play, including a 14-match winning streak – the fourth-longest in program history at the time. She then moved into the No. 1 spot where she went 6-2 and earned her career’ third First Team All-OVC selection. That same season, she and her twin sister Lidia went 8-0 in OVC play to extend their winning streak 12-straight matches – the second-longest winning streak in program history.
Claudia capped off her career after leading the Govs to the best season in program history, after posting a 20-0 mark prior to their loss in the NCAA Tournament.
Lidia Yanes Garcia | 2015-19
The career of Lidia Yanes Garcia was defined in her freshman season when she became the first player in OVC history to be named the OVC Player and Freshman of the Year. She led the APSU Govs with nine OVC wins during her first season in Clarksville, going 13-3 in singles play overall.
She followed her stellar freshman campaign by going 14-2 in singles while exclusively playing the No. 1 position, including a 9-0 mark against the OVC. That season, she earned her second-straight OVC Player of the Year honor and was once again named First Team All-OVC.
After posting a 16-2 singles mark and 16-8 doubles mark alongside Claudia, Lidia again earned OVC Player of the Year honors – becoming the first player in OVC history to accomplish the feat.
In her senior season, during the APSU Govs’ 20-match winning streak which took it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2010, Lidia posted a career-best 17-2 singles mark, which included a 14-match winning streak – the fourth-longest in program history at the time. She and Claudia also went 14-4 in doubles play, ending the season on an 11-match winning streak.
Austin Peay State University’s all-time wins leader with 102 singles and 58 doubles victories, respectively, Lidia was one of 262 NCAA Division I student-athletes to earn NCAA Woman of the Year honors.
