TEMPE, Ariz. – Winners of four straight, the No. 21 Sun Devils will pay a visit to in-state rival Arizona for the regular season finale on Saturday, April 22 (1 p.m. MST) at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center.
The Sun Devils are 16-2 against the Wildcats dating back to 2000, having won the previous seven meetings. They've outscored the Wildcats 34-3 in this current win streak.
SUN DEVIL NOTABLES
- The Sun Devils are vying for the 13th 17-plus win season under head coach Sheila McInerney. A win on Saturday in Tucson would be the first time the Sun Devils have won 17 matches or more in consecutive seasons since 2013-14.
- After their recent sweep of No. 48 Utah, the Sun Devils completed an undefeated home slate for the first time in program history, as they won all 15 matches at the Whiteman Tennis Center this spring.
- Not just perfect at home this season, the Sun Devils also extended their win streak in Tempe to 20 consecutive matches, having beaten nine top-55 opponents in that span. They are 26-1 at Whiteman in the past two seasons.
- A win on Saturday would push the Sun Devils to 7-3 in conference play this spring, their best record against league opponents since 2018. They've won four consecutive matches against Pac-12 foes (USC, UCLA, Colorado and Utah).
- The Sun Devils continue to ascend up the ITA rankings, checking in the latest polls as the No. 21 team in the nation. They were No. 23 a week ago and No. 30 two weeks prior. Chelsea Fontenel (No. 101) is the only Sun Devil listed in the singles rankings, while the Domenika Turkovic/Patricija Spaka duo are No. 24 in doubles.
Home, sweep home ??
— Arizona State Women's Tennis (@sundevilwtennis) April 17, 2023
We were perfect at home all spring for the first time in program history ?? pic.twitter.com/jKCnuBpIIk
PREVIEWING THE No. 48 WILDCATS (16-11, 3-6)
- The Wildcats, like the Sun Devils, recently swept both Colorado and Utah last weekend. It snapped Arizona's five-match losing streak.
- At 16-11 this spring, the Wildcats have now finished .500 or better in each of the last four full seasons.
- Arizona is led by fifth-year head coach Ryan Stotland, who's guided the Wildcats to back-to-back 16-win seasons.
- The Wildcats have gotten plenty of contributions in singles play, as five have tallied double-digit wins this spring – Reece Carter (15), ??Midori Castillo-Meza (12), Tanvi Narendran (11), Parker Fry (10) and Kayla Wilkins (10).
- Among the 10 on the Arizona roster, seven are underclassmen, a promising sign for the future of the Wildcats' program.
17-PLUS WIN SEASONS UNDER COACH McINERNEY
2022 – 17-8
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
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 (W, 4-0)
Saturday, April 15 vs. Utah (W, 4-0)
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.
UP NEXT
That's all for the 2022-23 regular season. The Sun Devils will now prepare for the Pac-12 Championships in Ojai, California (April 26-29), a tournament where they reached the final match last spring for the first time in program history.