The ASU men's and women's tennis teams began individual play at the three-day Pac-10 Championships on Thursday in Ojai, Calif.
Of the eight men's teams represented at Pac-10s, 32 individual players vie for a shot at the individual championship - four men from each team.
On the women's end, nine conference schools brought teams to the tournament - Oregon State lacks a women's tennis team - allowing each school to bring three players.
A committee of coaches filled the remaining five slots based on individual playing records.
Regarding the doubles tournament, the men's teams were designated space for two doubles teams per squad, while the women's teams were given slots for one doubles team.
The remaining seven women's doubles team slots were chosen by the same committee of coaches as the individual spots. Players were again chosen on the basis of record.
On Thursday, the race for the individual championship title was narrowed down to the quarterfinals.
Women's run ends
at Sweet 16
The ASU women's tennis team brought four players into the individual championships this weekend - the requisite three and a fourth appointed by committee.
Seniors Kady Pooler, Roxanne Clarke, Sabrina Capannolo and freshman Nadia Abdala all stepped onto the courts on behalf of the Sun Devils.
In the first round, Pooler and Clarke were knocked out in straight sets. Clarke fell to No. 16 Anne Yelsey of Stanford, 6-1, 6-1.
Pooler was defeated by Cal's Nina Henkel (No. 23), 6-2, 6-2.
Cappanolo (No. 67) and Abdala (No. 29) defeated Washington's Mathilde Cor and Aleksandra Malovic, respectively, earning them both berths to the second round of play.
But the Sun Devils' chances for the individuals' title ended there.
Cappanolo was defeated by No. 10 Sarah Fansler of USC, 7-5, 6-2, while No. 12 Theresa Logar of Stanford defeated Abdala, 6-1, 6-3.
Men reach quarterfinals
The men's half of Sun Devil tennis fared slightly better than the women in the individual championships brackets.
Matt Brooklyn (No. 91) and Juan Carlos Rebaza (No. 118) made it through the first two rounds on Thursday to qualify for Friday's quarterfinals.
Rebaza and Brooklyn made quick work of their first round opponents. Rebaza defeated Michael Look (UCLA) 6-4, 6-4, while Brooklyn shot down Stanford Eric McKean 6-0, 6-1.
In the second round, Rebaza defeated UA's Jason Labrosse 6-4, 6-2.
Brooklyn took his match against Mathieu Dehaine to a third set and tiebreaker, but defeated the UCLA junior, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(5).
Also representing ASU, Wes Miller and T.J. Bellama competed in the opening round of 32 players.
Miller was defeated in the first round by UCLA's Philipp Gruendler 7-6, 6-3. Bellama was also defeated in the first round, falling to Washington's 87th-ranked Alex Slovic, 7-6(2), 6-4.
The individual championship quarterfinals will be played today as well as the first two rounds of doubles play.
ASU coaches could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Reach the reporter at: brittany.mccall@asu.edu.
