March 6, 2009
TEMPE, Ariz-- It was a long day in the desert, but one that ultimately meant victory for the Sun Devils Women's Tennis team as they put away the Huskies 5-2 in a heated battle against Washington.
The Devils came out strong in doubles play as sisters Laila and Nadia Abdala vanquished Lina Xu and Aleksandra Malovic 8-3. Sianna Simmons and Ashlee Brown swiftly conquered Aleksandra Krsljanin and Samantha Smith, while in the No. 1 spot, Washington's Venise Chan and Denise Dy proved formidable opponents, but were ultimately overpowered by tenth-ranked duo Micaela Hein and Kelcy McKenna, to give ASU the doubles point.
Singles action started off smoothly, with senior Laila Abdala breezing past Samantha Smith 6-0, 6-2 and her sister Nadia Abdala skillfully defeating Denise Dy 7-5, 6-1. The Devils found themselves a bit off course as No. 79 Micaela Hein struggled against Lina Xu, losing 7-5, 6-4 and Sianna Simmons dropped a challenging set to Aleksandra Krsljanin. The Devils were able to get back on track with No. 3 Kelcy McKenna's hard-hitting win over No. 21 Venise Chan 4-6, 6-1, 7-5, in the No. 1 spot. Wrapping up a lengthy but exciting day was the Sun Devil's newest face Michelle Brycki, who adeptly battled it out in the No. 5 position against Aleksandra Malovic, triumphing 6-7, 7-6, 7-6.
With the Huskies climbing the rankings in the last week and after losing to the team last year in Seattle, the Devils were on a crusade to win against them at home. "We knew it was going to be a dog fight and we competed well against a very good team," Head Coach Sheila McInerney said.
Women's Tennis will be back in action at Whiteman Tennis Center tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. when they take on the Cougars of Washington State.