Hattingh, Ponwith Set for NCAA Singles Championships
TEMPE - Arizona State is sending two to the NCAA Singles Championship in Orlando, Florida! No. 84 Nathan Ponwith and No. 84 Ilze Hattingh will both represent the Maroon and Gold in the final tournaments of their Sun Devil careers. Both the men's and women's individual championships kick off Sunday with the round of 64. The entirety of the championships will be streamed via TennisONE.
Hattingh opens the tournament at 3 p.m. EST (Noon MST) Sunday against No. 59 Megan Davies of South Carolina. Ponwith begins play at 6 p.m. EST (3 p.m. MST) Sunday against No. 6 Sam Riffice of Florida.
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The hometown kid
Ponwith earned All-Conference honors this week from the Pac-12 conference for his phenomenal year. The Scottsdale native earned a First Team spot on the Pac-12's All-Conference team after going 15-9 in singles and 13-9 in doubles. He previously earned a Second Team selection in 2019. Ponwith was easily ASU's most electric player. He went 14-9 at the No. 1 position where he kicked off the year with a six-match winning streak. He went on to pick up seven victories against ranked opponents. His success continued in doubles play where he strung together six-straight wins playing alongside Max McKennon and George Stoupe.
Riffice and No. 1 Florida topped No. 8 Texas A&M (4-1) Friday in the NCAA Team Championship quarterfinals. Riffice's tandem lost in doubles, but the captain rebounded at No. 2 singles where he won 7-6. 6-4. Riffice is 26-7 in singles and 22-10 in doubles.
The South African Sensation
Hattingh earned second team All-Conference honors this week, the second time she's received the honor in her career. The Pretoria, South Africa, native went 11-7 this season and was just shy of a dozen wins in doubles. Hattingh previously earned Pac-12 Second Team honors in 2019, the same year she and Lauryn John-Baptiste earned Pac-12 Doubles Team of the Year and their second-consecutive Doubles Team All-America honor.
ASU's No. 1 went 6-1 in the heart of the season and picked up four wins against ranked opponents, including a two-set sweep over No. 33 Emma Antonaki of Mississippi State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in Austin, Texas. With Hattingh's help, ASU topped No. 5 USC and No. 38 Mississippi State during the year.
Davies holds a 13-8 singles record, going 11-5 in dual matches at No. 2. She's won her last three outings, including a two-set win over No. 46 Marlee Zein of No. 11 Florida. Davies has topped five ranked opponents this season.