WACO/FORT WORTH – Fresh off a successful weekend in Indian Wells, Sun Devil men's tennis heads to the Lone Star state to take on two familiar foes in No. 6 Baylor and No. 10 TCU, and one new opponent in Incarnate Word.
ASU kicks off the road trip with a Friday morning match against Incarnate Word for game one of a Friday double-header. The match will be played clinch-clinch and begin with singles. Should the match not be clinched through singles, both teams will then use the doubles point as the game-winner.
Later that evening the Sun Devils face off against Baylor, a team they went up against last season in the first round of the NCAA National Championships. The Bears currently sit in the No. 6 spot this time around, amassing a 16-2 record so far. The squad's two losses have come against No. 11 North Carolina (4-0) and No. 12 Columbia (4-1), both at the ITA Indoor National Championships.
The Bears have returned all of their starters from last season, as they held a majority underclassmen roster, similar to the Sun Devils.
"They compete really well and they know their tennis," coach Matt Hill said. "They've beat some really good teams, so they have a lot of trust in themselves."
TCU is 12-3 so far in 2019 and currently riding a seven-match win streak into this weekend. Only three teams have topped the Horned Frogs this year in Tulsa (4-2), No. 4 Florida (4-3) and No. 11 North Carolina (4-3). The Frogs have faced off against one Pac-12 opponent in No. 17 UCLA, blanking the Bruins 4-0 in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in February.
"They have great depth and talent all the way through the lineup, and their coaches do a fantastic job," Hill said. "They've been winning some really quality matches, and they've been top-10 so it's going to be a really tough match."
The Devils and Frogs have already faced off this season, as the two went head-to-head in the Tempe Collegiate Cup in January. No. 55 Nathan Ponwith notched his first win playing for his hometown team in the tournament, taking a straight-set 7-5, 6-1 win over then-No. 69 Eduardo Roldan.
"Having played them already this season helps a lot because we know some of their guys," Hill said. "They were like us at that time in trying to get their feet under them, so it's definitely much more helpful than going in blind."
After a slow start to the season, Ponwith has hit his stride as of late, registering four wins in his last six decisions including two last time out at the Oracle Collegiate Challenge.
"He's dialed in and he's excited," Hill said. "He's always worked hard, but now he's playing better tennis and trusting in his game more. We're seeing some great things out of him and we don't expect to see anything but that this weekend."
The Scottsdale-native notched a thrilling three-set win over the No. 37-ranked player in the country to seal a comeback win over No. 13 Michigan, representing the first win over a top-25 program for the Sun Devils since its reinstatement in 2018. For his efforts, Ponwith jumped 19 spots in the rankings from No. 74 to No. 55.
Justin Roberts also took home two wins in Indian Wells, putting up a quick straight-set victory against Cal to spark ASU's comeback effort in the match. As the teammate with the most collegiate experience, Roberts represents a pillar on the courts as well as off for ASU.
"His leadership off the court is huge because this team is a young team," Hill said. "The way they interact and work with each other is still to this day being formulated, and Justin has a lot of experience leading and has also been on one of my teams before so he understands what I want. It's invaluable. You can't put a price tag on that."
First serve with Incarnate Word on Friday is set for 8 a.m. MST with game two against Baylor at 5 p.m. MST while ASU and TCU are set for a 11 a.m. MST first serve on Sunday morning. Fans can follow the action all season-long by following @SunDevilMTennis on Twitter.
ASU kicks off the road trip with a Friday morning match against Incarnate Word for game one of a Friday double-header. The match will be played clinch-clinch and begin with singles. Should the match not be clinched through singles, both teams will then use the doubles point as the game-winner.
Later that evening the Sun Devils face off against Baylor, a team they went up against last season in the first round of the NCAA National Championships. The Bears currently sit in the No. 6 spot this time around, amassing a 16-2 record so far. The squad's two losses have come against No. 11 North Carolina (4-0) and No. 12 Columbia (4-1), both at the ITA Indoor National Championships.
The Bears have returned all of their starters from last season, as they held a majority underclassmen roster, similar to the Sun Devils.
"They compete really well and they know their tennis," coach Matt Hill said. "They've beat some really good teams, so they have a lot of trust in themselves."
TCU is 12-3 so far in 2019 and currently riding a seven-match win streak into this weekend. Only three teams have topped the Horned Frogs this year in Tulsa (4-2), No. 4 Florida (4-3) and No. 11 North Carolina (4-3). The Frogs have faced off against one Pac-12 opponent in No. 17 UCLA, blanking the Bruins 4-0 in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in February.
"They have great depth and talent all the way through the lineup, and their coaches do a fantastic job," Hill said. "They've been winning some really quality matches, and they've been top-10 so it's going to be a really tough match."
The Devils and Frogs have already faced off this season, as the two went head-to-head in the Tempe Collegiate Cup in January. No. 55 Nathan Ponwith notched his first win playing for his hometown team in the tournament, taking a straight-set 7-5, 6-1 win over then-No. 69 Eduardo Roldan.
"Having played them already this season helps a lot because we know some of their guys," Hill said. "They were like us at that time in trying to get their feet under them, so it's definitely much more helpful than going in blind."
After a slow start to the season, Ponwith has hit his stride as of late, registering four wins in his last six decisions including two last time out at the Oracle Collegiate Challenge.
"He's dialed in and he's excited," Hill said. "He's always worked hard, but now he's playing better tennis and trusting in his game more. We're seeing some great things out of him and we don't expect to see anything but that this weekend."
The Scottsdale-native notched a thrilling three-set win over the No. 37-ranked player in the country to seal a comeback win over No. 13 Michigan, representing the first win over a top-25 program for the Sun Devils since its reinstatement in 2018. For his efforts, Ponwith jumped 19 spots in the rankings from No. 74 to No. 55.
Justin Roberts also took home two wins in Indian Wells, putting up a quick straight-set victory against Cal to spark ASU's comeback effort in the match. As the teammate with the most collegiate experience, Roberts represents a pillar on the courts as well as off for ASU.
"His leadership off the court is huge because this team is a young team," Hill said. "The way they interact and work with each other is still to this day being formulated, and Justin has a lot of experience leading and has also been on one of my teams before so he understands what I want. It's invaluable. You can't put a price tag on that."
First serve with Incarnate Word on Friday is set for 8 a.m. MST with game two against Baylor at 5 p.m. MST while ASU and TCU are set for a 11 a.m. MST first serve on Sunday morning. Fans can follow the action all season-long by following @SunDevilMTennis on Twitter.