COLLEGE STATION/TEMPE – After a bye week, Sun Devils men's tennis is back in action this weekend with two matches against Texas A&M and No. 41 San Diego.
ASU (3-4) takes on the Aggies tentatively at 5 p.m. MST on Friday, but first serve could change due to impending rain in the forecast in College Station. If rain becomes a factor, the Sun Devils could potentially make the trip up to Waco to play at Baylor's indoor facility with an 8 p.m. MST first serve.
"The weather doesn't affect us all that much, but I'm confident we will adjust because we are a good indoor team," coach Matt Hill said. "If anything, it takes us off of A&M courts where they're comfortable and I like that."
The squad has gone on a solid streak as of late, winning three of their last four matchups. The effort has been due to contributions from the top of the lineup all the way to the bottom.
"We have a lot of guys that are starting to play better tennis which is a great sign for us," Hill said. "We want to feel really good about the six players going out there and competing and we're definitely getting a lot stronger as the weeks go on."
Spearheading the great play has been Justin Roberts and Andrea Bolla, two players Hill has highly praised so far this year.
Bolla has won three of his last five matches dating back to the fall including notching two wins over ranked opponents. The Italian has bounced between courts two and three for the Sun Devils and looks to continue his hot streak heading into this weekend.
"I've been really impressed with the way Andrea has been playing," Hill said. "We're really excited about his progress because he's been playing the best tennis we've ever seen him play."
Roberts made his season debut in the rankings at No. 97, the first time the first-year transfer has earned a spot on the rankings in his career. Tim Ruehl/Andrea Bolla jumped up four spots to No. 22 and Nathan Ponwith/Dominik Kellovsky dropped to No. 51 as doubles pairs. Roberts' ranking comes after defeating the No. 12-ranked player in the nation against Ohio State, a feat Hill didn't take lightly.
"Rankings are a result of the work you put in and Justin's been putting in a ton of work," Hill said. "He's been putting in a lot of work over the past couple months and he's been progressing really well."
This year's A&M squad sits in a completely different spot than the Aggie squad the Sun Devils faced last year, holding a 3-3 record and going unranked in the latest Oracle/ITA rankings. A&M dropped matchups with No. 16 Virginia, No. 13 Notre Dame and Texas Tech while notching wins over Abilene Christian, UTRGV and Western Michigan.
Last season, the Aggies rolled into Tempe at the No. 7 spot by the ITA, ending 2018 with a 26-6 record and an NCAA Tournament berth. A&M reached the semifinals of the team tournament before bowing out against the eventual national champion, No. 1 Wake Forest.
"They graduated a couple guys and one went pro, so they don't have the same kids," Hill said. "But they did a good job of recruiting, so they have a lot of good depth. They just aren't as seasoned as they were last year."
The Sun Devils play their second of just five home matches on Sunday, welcoming the Toreros to the Whiteman Tennis Center at 2 p.m. ASU dropped the doubles point in last year's match, but was able to take three singles victories to pull the score to 3-3. Benjamin Hannestad came through, taking his match on court three in straight sets to secure the win for the Sun Devils.
This season the Toreros sit at 5-2 and also notched their first ranking this season in the Feb. 20 poll at No. 41. San Diego hasn't beat a ranked opponent yet this season but has faced two Pac-12 foes in No. 7 UCLA – a match they dropped 4-1 – and Oregon, a match they dropped 4-3.
"They have a lot of the same team that they had last year, and they're also a really good team with really good coaching," Hill said. "They've got another year under their belt just like we do and it's going to be a really good match for our fans here on Sunday."
Fans can keep up with this weekend's action by following @SunDevilMTennis on Twitter.
ASU (3-4) takes on the Aggies tentatively at 5 p.m. MST on Friday, but first serve could change due to impending rain in the forecast in College Station. If rain becomes a factor, the Sun Devils could potentially make the trip up to Waco to play at Baylor's indoor facility with an 8 p.m. MST first serve.
"The weather doesn't affect us all that much, but I'm confident we will adjust because we are a good indoor team," coach Matt Hill said. "If anything, it takes us off of A&M courts where they're comfortable and I like that."
The squad has gone on a solid streak as of late, winning three of their last four matchups. The effort has been due to contributions from the top of the lineup all the way to the bottom.
"We have a lot of guys that are starting to play better tennis which is a great sign for us," Hill said. "We want to feel really good about the six players going out there and competing and we're definitely getting a lot stronger as the weeks go on."
Spearheading the great play has been Justin Roberts and Andrea Bolla, two players Hill has highly praised so far this year.
Bolla has won three of his last five matches dating back to the fall including notching two wins over ranked opponents. The Italian has bounced between courts two and three for the Sun Devils and looks to continue his hot streak heading into this weekend.
"I've been really impressed with the way Andrea has been playing," Hill said. "We're really excited about his progress because he's been playing the best tennis we've ever seen him play."
Roberts made his season debut in the rankings at No. 97, the first time the first-year transfer has earned a spot on the rankings in his career. Tim Ruehl/Andrea Bolla jumped up four spots to No. 22 and Nathan Ponwith/Dominik Kellovsky dropped to No. 51 as doubles pairs. Roberts' ranking comes after defeating the No. 12-ranked player in the nation against Ohio State, a feat Hill didn't take lightly.
"Rankings are a result of the work you put in and Justin's been putting in a ton of work," Hill said. "He's been putting in a lot of work over the past couple months and he's been progressing really well."
This year's A&M squad sits in a completely different spot than the Aggie squad the Sun Devils faced last year, holding a 3-3 record and going unranked in the latest Oracle/ITA rankings. A&M dropped matchups with No. 16 Virginia, No. 13 Notre Dame and Texas Tech while notching wins over Abilene Christian, UTRGV and Western Michigan.
Last season, the Aggies rolled into Tempe at the No. 7 spot by the ITA, ending 2018 with a 26-6 record and an NCAA Tournament berth. A&M reached the semifinals of the team tournament before bowing out against the eventual national champion, No. 1 Wake Forest.
"They graduated a couple guys and one went pro, so they don't have the same kids," Hill said. "But they did a good job of recruiting, so they have a lot of good depth. They just aren't as seasoned as they were last year."
The Sun Devils play their second of just five home matches on Sunday, welcoming the Toreros to the Whiteman Tennis Center at 2 p.m. ASU dropped the doubles point in last year's match, but was able to take three singles victories to pull the score to 3-3. Benjamin Hannestad came through, taking his match on court three in straight sets to secure the win for the Sun Devils.
This season the Toreros sit at 5-2 and also notched their first ranking this season in the Feb. 20 poll at No. 41. San Diego hasn't beat a ranked opponent yet this season but has faced two Pac-12 foes in No. 7 UCLA – a match they dropped 4-1 – and Oregon, a match they dropped 4-3.
"They have a lot of the same team that they had last year, and they're also a really good team with really good coaching," Hill said. "They've got another year under their belt just like we do and it's going to be a really good match for our fans here on Sunday."
Fans can keep up with this weekend's action by following @SunDevilMTennis on Twitter.