TEMPE, Ariz. – Just like they did last spring, the No. 23 Sun Devils (14-5 4-3), are getting hot at just the right time.
Winners of two straight against No. 29 USC and No. 26 UCLA, the Sun Devils will look to close out the home schedule with an emphatic finish against No. 54 Colorado (Friday, April 14, 1:30 p.m. MST) and No. 48 Utah (Saturday, April 15, 12 p.m. MST).
Saturday's contest will serve as Senior Day, where the Sun Devils will recognize and honor Sedona Gallagher and Domenika Turkovic prior to the start of play.
Sedona Gallagher Bio | Domenika Turkovic Bio
Fans can follow along with the action via live stats, which will be made available for both matches this weekend. Lou Malnati's Food Truck will be on-site during the match against the Utes, where 20 percent of proceeds will go to the Women's Tennis program.
After last weekend's sweep of the Trojans and Bruins, the Sun Devils have now won 18 consecutive matches at the Whiteman Tennis Center dating back to March 5, 2022, including a perfect 13-0 this spring.
RECENT HISTORY OF SUN DEVILS AT WHITEMAN
2023: 13-0
2022: 11-1
2021: 9-2
2020: 8-1 (before COVID-19 cancellation)
2019: 10-3
2018: 10-1
TOTAL: 61-8 (.884)
A look at some marquee victories in the team's current 18-match home win streak:
No. 12 Cal – April 1, 2022
No. 17 Stanford – April 2, 2022
Arizona – April 16, 2022
No. 17 San Diego – February 4, 2023
No. 46 Baylor – March 4, 2023
No. 53 Oregon – March 5, 2023
No. 29 USC – April 7, 2023
No. 26 UCLA – April 8, 2023
SUN DEVIL NOTABLES
- The Sun Devils were rewarded for their big weekend by surging seven spots in the latest ITA team rankings, currently sitting at No. 23 in the nation in the latest ITA polls. It's their first time back in the top-25 since early March and their highest ranking since being listed at No. 19 in mid-February.
- Freshman Chelsea Fontenel is ranked as the No. 98 singles player in the nation, good for the highest ranking in her collegiate career. The Domenika Turkovic/Patricija Spaka duo is listed at No. 20 in doubles.
- Marianna Argyrokastriti continues to be rock-solid for the Sun Devils this spring. After a pair of wins against USC and UCLA over the weekend, she now owns a team-best 17 singles wins this spring.
- Paired with the nationally ranked duo of Turkovic/Spaka, the Sun Devils have also been powered by Giulia Morlet/Sedona Gallagher on doubles Court 2, as they've posted a team-best 10-2 record this spring.
- Senior Day! The Sun Devils will honor and celebrate Sedona Gallagher and Domenika Turkovic prior to the start of the contest against Utah on April 15. The two veteran leaders have been mainstays for the Sun Devils in the last two seasons, playing every match and posting a collective 24-9 singles record this spring.
PREVIEWING THE No. 54 BUFFALOES (11-8, 2-5)
- The Buffaloes are coming off a thrilling upset win over No. 16 Washington over the weekend, where they wiped away a 3-0 deficit and stacked on four consecutive singles wins to beat the Huskies.
- Senior Antonia Balzert delivered one of those four wins on Court 1, def. No. 97 Hikaru Sato in a third-set thriller, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (6).
- The Buffaloes are led by second-year head coach Anthony Pham. After an 8-14 campaign in his first season last spring, Pham has already guided the Buffaloes to a double-digit win season and a top-55 national ranking.
- The Sun Devils are 23-2 against the Buffaloes dating back to 1975, having won the past 13 meetings.
PREVIEWING THE No. 48 UTES (12-8, 3-4)
- Utah is led by fourth-year head coach Ric Mortera. Following a 15-win season and a Top 10 recruiting class in 2021-22, Mortera signed to a five-year extension. Upon conclusion of the 2022 season, Mortera was named Wilson/ITA Mountain Region Coach of the Year.
- The Utes come to Tempe winners of two straight, having dispatched Washington and Washington State in their most recent matches.
- Freshman Kaila Barksdale, the program's first blue-chip recruit, has posted a 6-2 record on singles Court 3 this spring.
- Barksdale and Marcela Lopez are a team-best 10-3 in doubles this season.
- The Utes have a strong backend of the starting lineup in Marcela Lopez and Samantha Horwood, who have combined to go 21-6 on Courts 5 and 6, respectively.
- The Sun Devils are 9-1 against the Utes in their past 10 meetings, having won the past nine times.
MATCHES VS. PAC-12 OPPONENTS THIS SEASON
Sunday, March 5 vs. Oregon (W, 4-0)
Friday, March 17 at Washington (L, 1-4)
Sunday, March 19 at Washington State (W, 7-0)
Friday, March 31 at Cal (L, 6-1)
Saturday, April 1 at Stanford (L, 4-3)
Friday, April 7 vs. USC (W, 4-1)
Saturday, April 8 vs. UCLA (W, 4-2)
Friday, April 14 vs. Colorado
Saturday, April 15 vs. Utah
Saturday, April 22 at Arizona
NEARLY FOUR DECADES OF COACH MAC
Sheila McInerney is in year 39 at Arizona State. Only two current Pac-12 coaches have been at their job longer and fourth on the list is Hall of Famer Tara VanDerveer.
McInerney recently coached in her 900th career game as the Sun Devils' head coach against the No. 6 Buckeyes on February 19.
In April 2022, McInerney guided the Sun Devils to a 4-3 win over No. 12 Cal, securing the 550th win of her career.
CURRENT PAC-12 COACHES 37+ YEARS
Jack Clark, Cal Rugby (40th season in 2022-23)
Mary Lou Mulflur, Washington Women's Golf (40th season in 2022-23)
Sheila McInerney, Arizona State Women's Tennis (39th season in 2022-23)
Tara VanDerveer, Stanford Women's Basketball (37th season in 2022-23)
FUTURE DEVILS
The Sun Devils announced the signing of top Croatian junior Sara Svetac in early March, marking the second signee in the incoming freshmen class.
Svetac, who was ranked as high as No. 135 in the ITF Junior World rankings, has captured five ITF junior single titles and a trio of junior doubles titles.
She will arrive in Tempe this fall, joined alongside top Lithuanian junior Emilija Tverijonaite, who signed with the team in November 2022.
FOLLOW ALONG
Keep up with the Sun Devils all weekend long via the team's Twitter account, @sundevilwtennis, which will be updated with results, news recaps and more.