TEMPE, Ariz. – After three weeks of preparation, the Sun Devil women's tennis team returns to the grind of the regular season as they pursue their 30th-straight NCAA postseason appearance.
The Devils (2-1) return to Whiteman Tennis Center to host Nevada (2-1) on Friday at 1:30 p.m. and UNLV (6-1) on Sunday at 11 a.m.
"It will be nice to get back to competition and I know the girls have been getting antsy," said head coach Sheila McInerney. "We played some great tennis at the ITA Kick-Off in Lubbock, and we're hoping we pick up where we left off as we get back to work this weekend."
After upsetting then-No. 16 South Carolina in the first round of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, ASU suffered a nail-biting loss at the hands of new No. 7 Texas Tech.
Friday's matchup with the Wolfpack becomes the second-ever meeting between the two and first since February of 2014, in which the Devils won 7-0.
Junior Kelley Anderson is on a tear as of late, winning her last seven-straight matches dating back to the ASU Thunderbird Invitational. Five of those seven have come in straight sets.
Her doubles partner, with whom are ranked No. 45, is also handling her business on court five. Freshman Savannah Slaysman has won five of her last six singles matches, including the match-clinching point in the upset of South Carolina on Jan. 28.
Nevada plays in one other match before Friday, as they take on Grand Canyon in Phoenix at 11 a.m. They're currently on a two-game winning streak entering Thursday, with victories over Santa Clara and Sacramento State.
UNLV has started the season with two winning streaks on each side of their only loss (4-0) to then-No. 3 Pepperdine on Jan. 28. Currently, the Rebels have won four straight while not having lost a point in back-to-back matches.
In singles, they are led by No. 24 Carol Zi Yang, who has played five ranked opponents so far in 2017 with a 2-1 record and two undecided matches. Her biggest win of the season came against Duke's Meible Chi – ranked No. 21 – on Jan. 13 at the Freeman Memorial Invitational.
Outside of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, this weekend in Tempe becomes UNLV's first dual match on the road. In 2016, the Rebels finished 24-2 overall and 3-1 on the road. They were eliminated from the NCAA postseason in the first round by USC.
Friday is scheduled to be live streamed on Pac-12.com here, while Sunday's is TBD. Stay tuned for updates in regards to the weather forecast for the coming weekend here and via Twitter (@SunDevilTennis).
RANKED SINGLES
No. 24 Carol Zi Yang (UNLV)
No. 51 Sammi Hampton (ASU)
No. 67 Claudia Herrero Garcia (Nevada)
No. 101 Kassidy Jump (ASU)
RANKED DOUBLES
No. 44 Nicole Fossa Huergo / Alex Osborne
No. 45 Kelley Anderson / Savannah Slaysman
The Devils (2-1) return to Whiteman Tennis Center to host Nevada (2-1) on Friday at 1:30 p.m. and UNLV (6-1) on Sunday at 11 a.m.
"It will be nice to get back to competition and I know the girls have been getting antsy," said head coach Sheila McInerney. "We played some great tennis at the ITA Kick-Off in Lubbock, and we're hoping we pick up where we left off as we get back to work this weekend."
After upsetting then-No. 16 South Carolina in the first round of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, ASU suffered a nail-biting loss at the hands of new No. 7 Texas Tech.
Friday's matchup with the Wolfpack becomes the second-ever meeting between the two and first since February of 2014, in which the Devils won 7-0.
Junior Kelley Anderson is on a tear as of late, winning her last seven-straight matches dating back to the ASU Thunderbird Invitational. Five of those seven have come in straight sets.
Her doubles partner, with whom are ranked No. 45, is also handling her business on court five. Freshman Savannah Slaysman has won five of her last six singles matches, including the match-clinching point in the upset of South Carolina on Jan. 28.
Nevada plays in one other match before Friday, as they take on Grand Canyon in Phoenix at 11 a.m. They're currently on a two-game winning streak entering Thursday, with victories over Santa Clara and Sacramento State.
UNLV has started the season with two winning streaks on each side of their only loss (4-0) to then-No. 3 Pepperdine on Jan. 28. Currently, the Rebels have won four straight while not having lost a point in back-to-back matches.
In singles, they are led by No. 24 Carol Zi Yang, who has played five ranked opponents so far in 2017 with a 2-1 record and two undecided matches. Her biggest win of the season came against Duke's Meible Chi – ranked No. 21 – on Jan. 13 at the Freeman Memorial Invitational.
Outside of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, this weekend in Tempe becomes UNLV's first dual match on the road. In 2016, the Rebels finished 24-2 overall and 3-1 on the road. They were eliminated from the NCAA postseason in the first round by USC.
Friday is scheduled to be live streamed on Pac-12.com here, while Sunday's is TBD. Stay tuned for updates in regards to the weather forecast for the coming weekend here and via Twitter (@SunDevilTennis).
RANKED SINGLES
No. 24 Carol Zi Yang (UNLV)
No. 51 Sammi Hampton (ASU)
No. 67 Claudia Herrero Garcia (Nevada)
No. 101 Kassidy Jump (ASU)
RANKED DOUBLES
No. 44 Nicole Fossa Huergo / Alex Osborne
No. 45 Kelley Anderson / Savannah Slaysman