Women's tennis to host Sacramento State

March 27, 2009

The Arizona State Women's Tennis team will play host to No. 39 Sacramento State this weekend. The match will take place at the Whiteman Tennis Center at noon. The Sun Devils are 9-4 overall, 3-0 in Pac-10 play.<separator></separator>Scouting the Hornets The Hornets currently hold a 12-5 overall record and have won five of their last six matches. The team is led by No. 79 Katrina Zheltova. <separator></separator>Up Next The Sun Devils travel to the Bay Area next weekend for a tough weekend against Pac-10 foes No. 8 California and No. 11 Stanford. <separator></separator>Last Time Out The Sun Devils bowled over the Boilermakers last week. The team swept Purdue 7-0 to pick up their ninth victory of the season. <separator></separator>Legends of the Fall The Fall 2008 season saw ASU dominating competition at the Cal Nike Invitational, where sophomore <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/mckenna_kelcy00.html">… McKenna</a> took home the ITA Singles Gold crown as well as the ITA Doubles Gold title with teammate <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/hein_micaela00.html">M… Hein</a>. ASU also collected its third ITA All-American in two years with McKenna. <separator></separator>Double Duty The 2009 season has seen exciting doubles action from Arizona State, with the return of partners <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/hein_micaela00.html">M… Hein</a> and <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/mckenna_kelcy00.html">… McKenna</a>, who finished with an impressive 17-4 overall record in 2008 and are currently ranked 15th nationally. Senior <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/abdala_laila00.html">L… Abdala</a> has also paired up for a final season with her sister, junior <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/abdala_nadia00.html">N… Abdala</a> for a No. 58 spot in the national rankings. <separator></separator>To Be the Best... The Sun Devils have traditionally played one of the most rigorous schedules in the nation and this season will be no different. The team will be tested with a mixture of strong non-conference play and strenuous Pac-10 matchups.<separator></separator>Where They Stack Up Last year, the Sun Devils finished the season ranked at No. 23 posting a 15-8 overall record, a fourth place conference finish and making it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Arizona State is currently ranked 20th with four returning letter winners and powerhouse <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/mckenna_kelcy00.html">… McKenna</a>, currently No. 3 in the nation. <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/abdala_nadia00.html">N… Abdala</a> is currently ranked 43rd while <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/hein_micaela00.html">M… Hein</a> is 97th. <separator></separator>At The Helm Coach <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-tennis/mtt/mcinerney_sheila00.htm… McInerney</a> enters her 25th season at the helm of the Sun Devil program. In 2008, she led the team to a university record 21st consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance following a winning 15-8 season. Those wins saw ASU upset NCAA Champion UCLA, as well as conquer Stanford for the first time in program history.<separator></separator>