Tempe, Ariz. -- Looking to bounce back after a disappointing defeat at the hands of Northwestern University the week prior, the No. 24 Arizona State Sun Devils (5-1; Pac-12 0-0) women's tennis team swept Montana State in a two match double header, winning on Saturday afternoon at the Whiteman Tennis Center in Tempe, Ariz.
Saturday's two match marathon was the second such event for Arizona State in the past few weeks -- the other taking place on opening weekend against the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona, a weekend in which the Sun Devils swept both matches as well.
"We were clearly the better team than Montana State today, but I think our kids did a really good job of just focusing," ASU head coach Sheila McInerney said.
And the focus paid off. Arizona State did not drop one decision the whole day, winning 13 matches in two sets each. The Sun Devils entered the Whiteman Tennis Center as the favored team, but McInerney was sure to reinforce the fact that the frame of mind should not change whether it's the best team in the league or the worst.
"I'm a big believer of having respect for other team, even when on paper the matchup may not be as even as possible. Just going out there, playing hard, playing well, and I thought we did just that," the head coach said.
Arizona State started the morning off winning the doubles point, with the pairings of Desirae Kraczyk and Kassidy Jump winning along side Stepahnie Vlad and Alex Osborne. Krawczyk and Jump defeated Laura Middel and Ellie Crum by a score of 6-0 and Vlad and Obsorne put away Jess Brycki and Wena Tsan, winning 6-2.
From there, all six competing Sun Devils won their individual singles matches. Joanna Smith started the singles winning streak off blanking her opponent Jess Brycki twice, 6-0, 6-0, while Kassidy Jump followed up with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Ellie Crum.
Entering the match ranked No. 50 in the country, Stephanie Vlad topped Iva Parapunova in two identical sets, 6-1, 6-1, to give Arizona State the fourth overall team point and secure the match victory.
No. 90 Desirae Krawczyk, Leighann Sahagun and Gussie O'Sullivan followed suit capturing wins on their own courts. Krawczyk topped Laura Middel by a score of 6-2, 6-1 -- Sahagun defeated Paulina Lopez 7-5, 6-1 -- and O'Sullivan battled hard in a elongated 6-4, 6-2 victory over Wena Tsan.
The second match of the day was played under the new ITA experimental rules being rolled-out across the country to try and shorten match durations. The selected format for Saturday afternoon was a five match simultaneous play one doubles match and four singles matches, each following a best two out of the set format.
"We're trying out all these experimental formats in college tennis right now, so I think it's good that you get to play one regular match in the morning and then one in the afternoon under a different format so you can kind of get an idea what we want to come up with," McInerney said.
Arizona State took care of business yet again on all five courts, winning all ten sets while never giving up more than two games per set.
The sophomore pairing of Joanna Smith and Leighann Sahagun defeated Iva Parapunova and Paulina Lopez in two sets, 6-1, 6-2.
On the singles side of play, freshman Kassidy Jump topped Wena Tsan in two quick sets, 6-1, 6-0 in the first completed match of the afternoon. Desirae Krawczyk, Stephanie Vlad and Alex Osborne quickly followed as well, each earning victories on their respective courts.
"I thought our girls did a really good job of just staying on it and keeping their foot on the gas pedal," McInerney said.
The Sun Devils will be back in action tomorrow afternoon at 12 p.m. as they look to keep their home schedule perfect against San Jose State.
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No. 24 Arizona State 7 :: Montana State 0
Whiteman Tennis Center
Tempe, Arizona
2/1/14
10:00 a.m. MST
DOUBLES
1. Joanna Smith/Leighann Sahagun (ASU) vs. Iva Parapunova/Paulina Lopez (Montana St) 4-1 DNF
2. Desirae Krawczyk/Kassidy Jump (ASU) def. Laura Middel/Ellie Crum (Montana St) 6-0
3. Stephanie Vlad/ Alex Osborne (ASU) def. Jess Brycki/Wena Tsan (Montana St) 6-2
Order of Finish: 2, 3
SINGLES
1. No. 50 Stephanie Vlad (ASU) def. Iva Parapunova (Montana St) 6-1, 6-1
2. No. 91 Desirae Krawczyk (ASU) def. Laura Middel (Montana St) 6-2, 6-1
3. Leighann Sahagun (ASU) def. Paulina Lopez (Montana St) 7-5, 6-1
4. Kassidy Jump (ASU) def. Ellie Crum (Montana St) 6-1, 6-2
5. Gussie O'Sullivan (ASU) def. Wena Tsan (Montana St) 6-4, 6-2
6. Joanna Smith (ASU) def. Jess Brycki (Montana St) 6-0, 6-0
Order of Finish: 6, 4, 1, 2, 3, 5
No. 24 Arizona State 5 :: Montana State 0
Whiteman Tennis Center
Tempe, Arizona
2/1/14
2:00 p.m. MST
DOUBLES
1. Joanna Smith/Leighann Sahagun (ASU) def. Iva Parapunova/Paulina Lopez (Montana St) 6-1, 6-2
SINGLES
1. No. 50 Stephanie Vlad (ASU) def. Laura Middel (Montana St) 6-0, 6-1
2. No. 91 Desirae Krawczyk (ASU) def. Ellie Crum (Montana St) 6-0, 6-0
3. Kassidy Jump (ASU) def. Wena Tsan (Montana St) 6-1, 6-0
4. Alex Osborne (ASU) def. Molly Crum (Montana St) 6-1, 6-2
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1, 4