TEMPE – The regular season came to an end for Sun Devil Women's Tennis (13-8, 8-5 Big 12) with a 4-3 victory over Colorado last Sunday. Securing their spot as the No. 6 seed for the Big 12 Tournament that begins for Arizona State on Thursday at 2 p.m. AZT.
The team will play the winner of Colorado or Iowa State in the second round. Coverage can be seen on ESPN+ all week long with live stats available on Statbroadcast and Sidearm.
It's the first appearance for the Sun Devils in the Big 12 Tournament as part of their first season competing in the conference. With a victory on Thursday the team will face No. 3 Oklahoma State at 8 a.m. AZT in the quarterfinals.
Sun Devil Outlook:
No. 35 Arizona State (13-8, 8-5 Big 12)
Opponent Outlook
No. 59 Iowa State (11-10, 5-8 Big 12)
Colorado (8-13, 2-11 Big 12)
No. 17 Oklahoma State (18-6, 12-1 Big 12)
The Sun Devils fell against No. 15 Texas Tech last Friday 4-2. Patricija Spaka and Sara Svetac both garnered wins in singles play against the Red Raiders. The team bounced back with a victory over Colorado, 4-3. After dropping the doubles point, the team won four singles matches starting with Spaka who won her second match of the weekend. Nupbay and Evans both won in three set matches where Evans eventually clinched the match for the Sun Devils.
IN THE RANKINGS:
Sara Svetac has won seven straight matches and is No. 46 in the latest ITA rankings in singles play. She has resided in the top-50 for majority of the season and recently won her 20th match of the year, setting a career high. Emilija Tverijonaite is ranked No. 75 in singles and has a career-high 22 wins in her second year donning the maroon and gold. Entering the postseason. the Sun Devil doubles pair, Spaka and Taylor are No. 60 in the country.
SUPER SARA:
The Sophomore is currently 12-3 this season and has split time between the #1 and #2 spots in singles. She closed out the regular season with six straight wins in singles plaay boasting a 7-1 record in Big 12 play. Svetac has a 5-1 record from the #2 spot this spring. The Crotian was named Big 12 Player of the Week and earned a top-15 victory over Savannah Broadus of Pepperdine on Feb. 1. Svetac came off a successful fall season where she went 8-4 and is also 9-5 in doubles when paired with Karin Altori.
The Croatian has had a successful sophomore campaign, earning a top-50 ranking in singles. She's coming off a ranked win over Arizona's Josie Usereau for her second-ranked win of the year on March 29. In doubles, she has a team-best 11 wins.
MAGNIFICENT MILLIE:
Emilija Tverijonaite became the first Sun Devil to qualify for the NCAA Singles tournament since 2021 and went 12-2 during the fall season. The sophomore has double-digit singles wins this spring at a 10-7 mark. She is currently ranked No. 49 in the ITA rankings and has won six of the last eight doubles matches. Nupbay and Tverijoniate lead the team with six doubles wins with a 6-3 record.
Tverijonaite is one of four Sun Devils with six conference wins in singles, boasting a 6-5 record. This season, she set a career high with 22 singles wins after posting 21 victories in her freshman season. So far as a Sun Devil, she has a 43-16 record.
SPARKY MILESTONES:
The senior is currently 10-4 in singles after playing from the #3 spot this season. Additionally, she has won ten of her first 11 matches in doubles and racked up a 10-3 record in doubles alongside partner Lily Taylor.
From Latvia, Spaka has 132 wins as a Sun Devil between singles and doubles matches combined in her four years. Her 60 wins in singles play make her the 38th Sun Devil to reach 60+ career singles wins.
HOW TO FOLLOW:
Continue to follow Sun Devil Women's Tennis on Twitter/X, Instagram and Facebook for all the latest coverage this season. Fans can follow on live stats which can be found here.
The team will play the winner of Colorado or Iowa State in the second round. Coverage can be seen on ESPN+ all week long with live stats available on Statbroadcast and Sidearm.
It's the first appearance for the Sun Devils in the Big 12 Tournament as part of their first season competing in the conference. With a victory on Thursday the team will face No. 3 Oklahoma State at 8 a.m. AZT in the quarterfinals.
Sun Devil Outlook:
No. 35 Arizona State (13-8, 8-5 Big 12)
- Sara Svetac leads the team in doubles and singles wins on the year and is riding a seven-match winning streak going into the postseason.
- She boasts a 12-3 record this spring and has a 7-1 record in Big 12 play.
- Patricija Spaka sits at 62 career wins in singles which is tied for 34th in program history and recently notched her 70th career double win.
- The Sun Devils were victorious against both Iowa State and Colorado in the regular season.
- Three Sun Devils have seven conference wins in singles play, tying the most on the team. (Lily Taylor, Sara Svetac, Aiya Nupbay)
- Emilija Tverijonaite and Nupbay have six wins in Big 12 play as doubles partners which is the best on the team.
- Svetac and Tverijoniate have each won 20+ singles matches this season, both setting career highs in their second year in the maroon and gold, and leading the way for the Sun Devils this season.
Opponent Outlook
No. 59 Iowa State (11-10, 5-8 Big 12)
- Went 1-1 this past weekend and defeated No. 53 Kansas State 4-1. The team defeated Colorado in the conference opener on Feb. 28.
- Julia Camblor leads the team with 11 wins in singles play, including a 9-4 record from the #2 spot.
- Anna Kuearum has double-digit wins this season in singles play and has an 8-6 record from the #1 position.
Colorado (8-13, 2-11 Big 12)
- Won two conference games over Houston and West Virginia this spring. The team battled Arizona State to the brink where the Sun Devils emerged victorious.
- Mila Stanojevic leads the team with a 10-8 record in the spring with an 8-8 record from the #1 position.
- Ema Bubalo and Anya Nelson are 6-5 in doubles play and have played all their matches from the #1 spot.
No. 17 Oklahoma State (18-6, 12-1 Big 12)
- The Cowgirls won their second consecutive Big 12 regular season title by clinching a share of the championship with Texas Tech and UCF.
- The team has won 11 straight matches with their last loss coming on March 2nd against UCF.
- Oklahoma State defeated ASU 4-1 on March 21st and have been one of the hottest teams in the country.
- The Cowgirls have three ladies with 10+ conference wins, including Rose Marie Nijkamp going unbeaten in Big 12 play with a 10-0 record and has won 14 straight matches.
- Anastasiya Komar and Nijkamp are 19-2 this season and went unbeaten in conference play, going 11-0.
The Sun Devils fell against No. 15 Texas Tech last Friday 4-2. Patricija Spaka and Sara Svetac both garnered wins in singles play against the Red Raiders. The team bounced back with a victory over Colorado, 4-3. After dropping the doubles point, the team won four singles matches starting with Spaka who won her second match of the weekend. Nupbay and Evans both won in three set matches where Evans eventually clinched the match for the Sun Devils.
IN THE RANKINGS:
Sara Svetac has won seven straight matches and is No. 46 in the latest ITA rankings in singles play. She has resided in the top-50 for majority of the season and recently won her 20th match of the year, setting a career high. Emilija Tverijonaite is ranked No. 75 in singles and has a career-high 22 wins in her second year donning the maroon and gold. Entering the postseason. the Sun Devil doubles pair, Spaka and Taylor are No. 60 in the country.
SUPER SARA:
The Sophomore is currently 12-3 this season and has split time between the #1 and #2 spots in singles. She closed out the regular season with six straight wins in singles plaay boasting a 7-1 record in Big 12 play. Svetac has a 5-1 record from the #2 spot this spring. The Crotian was named Big 12 Player of the Week and earned a top-15 victory over Savannah Broadus of Pepperdine on Feb. 1. Svetac came off a successful fall season where she went 8-4 and is also 9-5 in doubles when paired with Karin Altori.
The Croatian has had a successful sophomore campaign, earning a top-50 ranking in singles. She's coming off a ranked win over Arizona's Josie Usereau for her second-ranked win of the year on March 29. In doubles, she has a team-best 11 wins.
MAGNIFICENT MILLIE:
Emilija Tverijonaite became the first Sun Devil to qualify for the NCAA Singles tournament since 2021 and went 12-2 during the fall season. The sophomore has double-digit singles wins this spring at a 10-7 mark. She is currently ranked No. 49 in the ITA rankings and has won six of the last eight doubles matches. Nupbay and Tverijoniate lead the team with six doubles wins with a 6-3 record.
Tverijonaite is one of four Sun Devils with six conference wins in singles, boasting a 6-5 record. This season, she set a career high with 22 singles wins after posting 21 victories in her freshman season. So far as a Sun Devil, she has a 43-16 record.
SPARKY MILESTONES:
The senior is currently 10-4 in singles after playing from the #3 spot this season. Additionally, she has won ten of her first 11 matches in doubles and racked up a 10-3 record in doubles alongside partner Lily Taylor.
From Latvia, Spaka has 132 wins as a Sun Devil between singles and doubles matches combined in her four years. Her 60 wins in singles play make her the 38th Sun Devil to reach 60+ career singles wins.
HOW TO FOLLOW:
Continue to follow Sun Devil Women's Tennis on Twitter/X, Instagram and Facebook for all the latest coverage this season. Fans can follow on live stats which can be found here.