TEMPE, Ariz. – Fresh off rejoining the ITA's Top 25 team rankings, the No. 25 Sun Devils (8-5, 1-3) are back in action this weekend when they venture up to Eugene to play No. 53 Oregon on Sunday, March 20, at 11 a.m. MST.
Dating back to 2000, the Sun Devils are 18-1 against the Ducks, winning their last four contests. In that span, the two have met 10 times in Eugene, in which the Sun Devils are 9-1.
Fans can tune into the action via the Oregon Live Stream or via live stats. Both will be made available to fans prior to the start of play on Sunday.
The Sun Devils are a week removed from a gauntlet of a two-match trip against No. 18 USC and No. 13 USC in Los Angeles. They were handed a 4-1 loss in each outing, but the Sun Devils were rewarded by the ITA for their strength of schedule and jumped back into the ITA Top 25 polls this week.
It's yet another week where Sheila McInerney's Sun Devils will be tested early and often against a solid Pac-12 opponent.
PREVIEWING THE DUCKS (8-4, 0-2)
- The Ducks are perfect at the Student Tennis Center through six matches so far this spring. After an 8-2 start, they've dropped their previous two contests against a pair of tricky opponents in No. 25 Stanford and No. 10 California.
- The Ducks are a year removed from a 13-8 campaign, their first double-digit win season since the spring of 2018.
- Oregon Ducklings: Of the 10 players listed on their team roster, nine are underclassmen. The team has zero seniors; Junior Allison Mulville is the only upperclassman.
- Freshman Karin Young and sophomore Ares Teixido Garcia are a combined 23-4 in singles play this season, with Young winning her last eight matches.
- Fourth-year head coach Courtney Nagle has the Ducks trending in the right direction. They were listed in the ITA's end-of-season rankings at No. 46 after going 13-8 in the spring, the first time since 2018 the Ducks were ranked in the final ITA rankings.
RANK 'EM
The Sun Devils' No. 25 ranking in ITA's national polls marks the second time that Sheila McInerney's group has been listed inside the top-25 already this spring. Domenika Turkovic and Patricija Spaka, the team's top-ranked doubles tandem, have continued to earn national recognition, checking in at No. 56 in doubles listings.
CHASING 550
Sheila McInerney continues her climb as one of the top women's tennis coaches in the history of the sport. McInerney is currently two wins shy of 550 in her 38-year head coaching career – all with the Sun Devils – and ranks fifth in career wins amongst active head coaches in the sport.
SPAK-TACULAR
The Sun Devils' star freshman Patricija Spaka is undefeated in singles more than halfway through her first collegiate season. With a team-high 11 singles wins this spring, with the latest coming against UCLA's Ava Catanzarite (6-4, 6-2).
Pair that with her national doubles ranking alongside Turkovic, and the Sun Devils couldn't be more pleased with what the freshman has produced this spring.
FOLLOW ALONG
Though the Sun Devils' stay in Eugene will be brief, the team's Twitter account will be ripe with content. Stay up to date with @ sundevilwtennis, as updates will be provided all afternoon.