TEMPE, Ariz. – After steering the Sun Devils to a 14-6 record in the regular season and the program's first trip to the final of the conference tournament, head coach Sheila McInerney has been named the Pac-12 Women's Tennis Coach of the Year.
The conference announced its end-of-season awards in a release Wednesday afternoon, which also saw sophomore Giulia Morlet selected to the Pac-12 First-Team.
"It's always nice to be honored by your peers and I am very appreciative of their support," head coach Sheila McInerney said. "As in any award that has a team component, you are only successful if you have a great group to work with everyday. I certainly am blessed to have a fantastic coaching staff and a talented and hard-working group of players."
It's the third time McInerney has taken home the honors (2016, 1997) and Morlet's first appearance on the all-conference list. Sedona Gallagher, Domenika Turkovic, Patricija Spaka and Cali Jankowski were named honorable mentions.
McInerney led a 2022 Sun Devil squad that, after losing their top three players from a season ago, returned five and welcomed two. Dubbed the "Super Seven," these Sun Devils went 11-1 at the Whiteman Tennis Center this season, with key wins against No. 12 Cal, No. 17 Stanford, No. 30 Kansas and No. 31 San Diego.
The Sun Devils ripped off eight consecutive wins to close out the season, which would propel them all the way to the final of the Pac-12 Tournament. Their total of 16 wins thus far this season are the most since 2018 and just the 13th time in McInerney's 38 seasons that the Sun Devils have tallied a 16-plus win campaign.
16-PLUS WIN SEASONS UNDER MCINERNEY
2018: 16-8
2016: 18-6
2014: 18-8
2013: 17-6
2001: 20-6
1992: 18-8
1991: 19-10
1990: 20-10
1989: 19-11
1988: 17-11
1986: 21-7
1985: 17-14
McInerney also earned career win No. 550 this spring when the Sun Devils toppled Cal, 4-3, on April 1 in Tempe.
A legendary win for our legendary coach.
— Arizona State Women's Tennis (@sundevilwtennis) April 1, 2022
Congrats to Sheila McInerney, who earned career win No. 550 today ??#ForksUp // #O2V pic.twitter.com/vmnOy4BYbL
Morlet continues to build on an incredible sophomore season. The Paris, France, native tallied eight singles wins on Court 1 this spring, with six of those wins coming against ranked opponents. In early April, Morlet beat Cal's Haley Giavara (No. 101) and Stanford's Connie Ma (No. 13) on consecutive days to help the Sun Devils beat the Golden Bears and Cardinal in the same season for the first time in program history.
She was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week on April 5 for her efforts.
Morlet has also jettisoned up national singles rankings this spring, reaching a career-best No. 77 on April 27.
McInerney, Morlet and the Sun Devils are back in action on Friday, when the team opens the NCAA Tournament with a First Round matchup against San Diego in Oklahoma.