TEMPE – No. 30 Sun Devil Women's Tennis (8-4, 3-1 Big 12) hosts West Virginia and Cincinnati for a pair of conference duals at Whiteman Tennis Center beginning Friday at 4 p.m. MST against the Mountaineers and then Sunday against the Bearcats at 12 p.m. MST.
The two matches will mark the first duals against West Virginia and Cincinnati in program history as the Sun Devils continue their first year of competition in the Big 12 Conference. The matches can be followed on live stats and on social media at Sun Devil Women's Tennis on Twitter/X and Instagram.
Sun Devil Outlook:
No. 30 Arizona State (8-4)
Opponent Outlook:
West Virginia (7-5)
Cincinnati (6-5)
Last Time Out:
The Sun Devils split last weekend against then-No. 49 Kansas with a 2-4 defeat in Lawrence. Lily Taylor and Karsyn Evans both won singles matches. The team rebounded with a 4-0 sweep over the Iowa State Cyclones where Emilija Tverijonaite clinched the doubles point and the match helping ASU move to 3-1 in Big 12 play.
IN THE RANKINGS:
The Sun Devils boast two players in the top 50 in the latest ITA Rankings which were updated on March 4. Emilija Tverijonaite is ranked 27th in the country after an NCAA tournament appearance and is currently 7-3 on the year. Sara Svetac entered the top-50 at the end of the fall and is currently No. 45. The Sun Devils are one of two teams (Oklahoma State) in the Big 12 to have at least two players ranked in the top 50 in the ITA rankings.
Two Sun Devil doubles pairs are ranked in the latest ITA rankings. Spaka and Taylor are No. 30 in the country after an 8-0 start and Karin Altori and Svetac are No. 79 in the country and are currently 7-3 this year.
SUPERIOR SPARKY:
Spaka has been lights out to start things off in her senior year. The senior is currently 6-1 in singles after playing from the #3 spot this season. Additionally, she has racked up an 8-1 record in doubles alongside partner Lily Taylor. From Latvia, she currently sits at 58 career wins in singles and has 68 career wins in doubles.
SUPER SARA:
The Sophomore is currently 6-3 this season and has split time between the #1 and #2 spots in singles. Svetac's was named Big 12 Player of the Week and earned a top-15 victory over Savannah Broadus of Pepperdine on Feb. 1. Svetac came off a successful fall season where she went 8-4 and is also 7-3 in doubles when paired with Karin Altori.
MAGNIFICENT MILLIE:
Emilija Tverijonaite became the first Sun Devil to qualify for the NCAA Singles tournament since 2021 and went to go 12-2 during the fall season. The sophomore currently leads the team in singles wins at a 7-3 mark and helped clinch the wins over No. 51 BYU and No. 59 Iowa State. She is currently ranked No. 27 in the ITA rankings and has won two straight doubles matches.
NEW CONFERENCE, WHO THIS?
The Sun Devils were picked to finish fourth in the Big 12 Conference in the preseason poll announced on Jan. 7. The maroon and gold also picked up a first-place vote. Prior to joining the Big 12, the Sun Devils boast a 24-11 record against Big 12 opponents.
LOOKING AHEAD:
The Sun Devils continue Big 12 conference play next week with two duals against defending Big 12 champion Oklahoma State on March 21 at 4 p.m. AZT and Kansas State on March 23 at 12 p.m AZT.
HOW TO FOLLOW:
Continue to follow Sun Devil Women's Tennis on Twitter/X, Instagram and Facebook for all the latest coverage this season. Fans can follow on live stats which can be found here.
The two matches will mark the first duals against West Virginia and Cincinnati in program history as the Sun Devils continue their first year of competition in the Big 12 Conference. The matches can be followed on live stats and on social media at Sun Devil Women's Tennis on Twitter/X and Instagram.
Sun Devil Outlook:
No. 30 Arizona State (8-4)
- Arizona State will face off against West Virginia and Cincinnati for the first time in program history this weekend.
- The Sun Devils currently are undefeated at home with a 5-0 record. The team has won 14 of the last 17 matches at Whiteman Tennis Center since the start of the 2024 season.
- The doubles point has been essential to success this season with the Sun Devils being 7-2 this season in matches where they have won the doubles point.
- Emilija Tverijonaite leads the team with seven wins in singles matches this year.
- The team has won three straight matches from the #6 spot with Aiya Nupbay and Karsyn Evans contributing to the 6-3 record.
- Patricija Spaka is two wins away in singles to reach 60 career wins. She's also two wins away from reaching 70 career double victories.
Opponent Outlook:
West Virginia (7-5)
- West Virginia is currently searching for their first win in Big 12 play this season, however they were 7-1 in non-conference play.
- Mille Haagensen currently leads the team with 13 wins on the year in singles and has gone 6-6 from the #1 spot in duals.
- Julie Bousseau is 6-6 from the #2 spot as the Mountaineers are 7-6 this season.
- Michaela Kucharova and Laura Villanueva Morillo are 5-0 as a doubles pair playing from the #2 spot. As a team, they are 19-19 in doubles play.
Cincinnati (6-5)
- The Bearcats will face Arizona on Friday before heading north to face the Sun Devils on Sunday.
- Zeynep Erman is currently 7-2 this season in singles play and has played every match from the #1 spot.
- Sakurako Watanabe is tied with Erman for most singles wins on the team going 6-2 from the #5 spot and has a win from the #4 spot.
- The Bearcats have been successful from the #2 spot in doubles with a 7-2 record. Morgan Pyrz and Sakurako Watanabe is 6-2 from the spot this season.
Last Time Out:
The Sun Devils split last weekend against then-No. 49 Kansas with a 2-4 defeat in Lawrence. Lily Taylor and Karsyn Evans both won singles matches. The team rebounded with a 4-0 sweep over the Iowa State Cyclones where Emilija Tverijonaite clinched the doubles point and the match helping ASU move to 3-1 in Big 12 play.
IN THE RANKINGS:
The Sun Devils boast two players in the top 50 in the latest ITA Rankings which were updated on March 4. Emilija Tverijonaite is ranked 27th in the country after an NCAA tournament appearance and is currently 7-3 on the year. Sara Svetac entered the top-50 at the end of the fall and is currently No. 45. The Sun Devils are one of two teams (Oklahoma State) in the Big 12 to have at least two players ranked in the top 50 in the ITA rankings.
Two Sun Devil doubles pairs are ranked in the latest ITA rankings. Spaka and Taylor are No. 30 in the country after an 8-0 start and Karin Altori and Svetac are No. 79 in the country and are currently 7-3 this year.
SUPERIOR SPARKY:
Spaka has been lights out to start things off in her senior year. The senior is currently 6-1 in singles after playing from the #3 spot this season. Additionally, she has racked up an 8-1 record in doubles alongside partner Lily Taylor. From Latvia, she currently sits at 58 career wins in singles and has 68 career wins in doubles.
SUPER SARA:
The Sophomore is currently 6-3 this season and has split time between the #1 and #2 spots in singles. Svetac's was named Big 12 Player of the Week and earned a top-15 victory over Savannah Broadus of Pepperdine on Feb. 1. Svetac came off a successful fall season where she went 8-4 and is also 7-3 in doubles when paired with Karin Altori.
MAGNIFICENT MILLIE:
Emilija Tverijonaite became the first Sun Devil to qualify for the NCAA Singles tournament since 2021 and went to go 12-2 during the fall season. The sophomore currently leads the team in singles wins at a 7-3 mark and helped clinch the wins over No. 51 BYU and No. 59 Iowa State. She is currently ranked No. 27 in the ITA rankings and has won two straight doubles matches.
NEW CONFERENCE, WHO THIS?
The Sun Devils were picked to finish fourth in the Big 12 Conference in the preseason poll announced on Jan. 7. The maroon and gold also picked up a first-place vote. Prior to joining the Big 12, the Sun Devils boast a 24-11 record against Big 12 opponents.
LOOKING AHEAD:
The Sun Devils continue Big 12 conference play next week with two duals against defending Big 12 champion Oklahoma State on March 21 at 4 p.m. AZT and Kansas State on March 23 at 12 p.m AZT.
HOW TO FOLLOW:
Continue to follow Sun Devil Women's Tennis on Twitter/X, Instagram and Facebook for all the latest coverage this season. Fans can follow on live stats which can be found here.