After one day of play at the National Indoor Championships in Charlottesville, Va., the Sun Devils have experienced mixed results.
On Thursday, junior Nadia Abdala and her older sister, senior Laila Abdala, won their opening round doubles match to advance to the quarterfinals.
Sophomore Kelcy McKenna did not fare as well, however. McKenna lost her opening round singles match, but her tournament isn’t over.
McKenna will play Friday in the back draw, which can potentially give her two more matches against top-20 opponents.
While three Sun Devils are in Virginia this weekend, the others will stay in Tempe to host the Thunderbird Invitational, which begins Friday.
ASU coach Sheila McInerney said she hopes the atmosphere is both competitive and accommodating for the visiting opponents.
“We treat them well,” McInerney said. “We provide lunches and don’t charge an entry fee. We want to make sure their trips are worth it.”
The tournament festivities kicked off Thursday night with a dinner for all the competing teams and coaches.
The three-day event will begin with seven doubles matches each day at 8:30 a.m. at the Whiteman Tennis Center on Tempe campus.
The Sun Devils’ only home event of the fall season will also be their last. Teams from all over the country will compete this weekend including Michigan, Cal, USC and Utah.
The singles tournament will be a 32-player draw, in which each player is guaranteed at least four matches.
Competing for the Sun Devils in singles will be sophomores Micaela Hein, Amanda Martin and Ashlee Brown and freshmen Sianna Simpson and Ali Van Horne. Simpson and Brown will also team up and compete in doubles.
“With half of the team away, this tournament gives the rest of the girls an opportunity to stay sharp,” McInerney said. “It’s a great way to end the semester.”
McInerney said practice will soon be reduced to eight hours a week and that she wants each player to get a good amount of playing time.
Reach the reporter at todonnel@asu.edu.
