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Sun Devils Hit L.A. To Square Off Against No. 20 USC, No. 14 UCLA

Mar 10, 2022

TEMPE, Ariz. – Back on the road for the first time in a month, the Sun Devils will continue conference play this weekend when they visit No. 20 USC (Friday, March 11, 2:30 p.m. MST) and No. 14 UCLA (Saturday, March 12, 1 p.m. MST).

The Sun Devils (8-3, 1-1) are a week removed from splitting their first two matches of Pac-12 play, dropping the opener against Washington and rebounding the following afternoon over Washington State. After a 4-1 homestand, a tough test against a pair of top-20 squads stands in front of them now.

A triumphant weekend in Los Angeles would be historic for the Sun Devils. Two more wins gives Sheila McInerney 550 in her 38-year career and would be the first time since 2001 that the Sun Devils defeat both the Trojans and the Bruins in the same season.

Fans can tune into the action via live streams or through live stats. Both will be made available for each match on the team's Twitter account prior to the start of play.

PREVIEWING THE NO. 20 TROJANS (7-7, 1-1)

  • The Trojans have a potent top three in their singles lineup, as Eryn Cayetano (No. 6), Salma Ewing (No. 29) and Snow Han (No. 60) are all listed as some of the top singles players in the country, according to the ITA.
  • In the ITA's Preseason Singles Rankings, Cayetano was ranked the country's No. 1 singles player after winning the 2021 ITA National Fall Championships.
  • The Trojans are a year removed from a top-16 finish at the NCAA Tournament.
  • After a 6-1 start to begin the spring, USC has dropped six of its last seven contests.
  • Entering her fifth season as head coach, Alison Swain has guided the Trojans to a 53-35 record with a 17-15 mark in conference play.
  • The Trojans were bested by UCSB, 4-3, on February 26, a team that the Sun Devils beat at the ITA Kickoff Weekend in January.
  • Sun Devils' head coach Sheila McInerney is a USC alumna (1980). The four-time All-American also was a four-time Trojan Spirit Award winner who helped the Trojans to three national championships. She was the national collegiate doubles runner-up three times and a singles semifinalist in 1977.

RECENT HISTORY VS. THE TROJANS
APRIL 24, 2021: W, 4-3
APRIL 3, 2021: L, 5-2
MARCH 9, 2019: L, 4-3
APRIL 26, 2018: W, 4-2
APRIL 14, 2018: W, 4-3

LAST 10: 3-7

PREVIEWING THE NO. 14 BRUINS (6-3, 2-0)

  • Similar to the Trojans, the Bruins have some of the nation's top singles players in Abigail Forbes (No. 42), Elysia Bolton (No. 69), Kimmi Hance (No. 115), according to the ITA.
  • ??UCLA also has two doubles pairs that are nationally-ranked, in Ava Catanzarite/Abigail Forbes (No. 23) and Elysia Bolton/Elise Wagle (No. 33). Bolton and Wagle are 4-1 operating out of doubles Court 1 this spring.
  • Twenty-sixth-year head coach Stella Sampras entered this season with a 475-171 record with the Bruins, having guided UCLA to two NCAA Championship titles.
  • It's been more than a month since the Bruins' last loss, a 5-2 setback against Pepperdine on February 5. Since then, they've ripped off four straight wins, including the first two of conference play versus Colorado and Utah.
  • At 22-5 last season, the Bruins advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals.

RECENT HISTORY VS. THE BRUINS
APRIL 25, 2021: L, 4-2
APRIL 2, 2021: L, 4-3
MARCH 8, 2019: L, 4-2
APRIL 27, 2018: L, 4-1
APRIL 13, 2018: L, 4-0

LAST 10: 2-8

CHASING 550
Over the past 38 years, Sun Devil head coach Sheila McInerney has cemented herself as one of the winningest coaches in the vast history of NCAA Women's Tennis. With 548 career wins, McInerney ranks fifth all-time amongst active women's coaches.

RANK 'EM
The Sun Devils are the No. 30 in the latest team rankings by the ITA, a dip from their No. 17 listing a week ago. Senior Domenika Turkovic and freshman Patricija Spaka have teamed up to form a terrific one-two punch on Court 1 in doubles play in the early going of 2022. The pair has continued to earn national recognition, ranked in the latest ITA polls as the nation's No. 56 pair.

GOIN' BACK TO CALI
For much of the off-season, the coaching staff toyed with different lineups and wondered who would slot where in the starting six. A huge boost for McInerney this spring has been senior Cali Jankowski, the only returning player from the 2019 season, who's 8-1 in singles this spring.

Jankowski and Spaka have combined to go 18-1 in singles, serving as a formidable back end of the Sun Devils' six starters.

FOLLOW ALONG
Keep up with the Sun Devils' L.A. getaway by following the team's social media account, @sundevilwtennis.