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Tennis set to face Memphis before Pac-10 stretch


The season moves on as the ASU tennis team begins a seven-dual home stretch over 17 days.

It all starts with a matchup with Memphis (6-10) on Wednesday.

Two Pac-10 wins over Washington and Washington State the weekend finally got things rolling for ASU (6-2, 2-0 Pac-10) after dodging bad weather for several weeks.

“[Those] matches were great for us last weekend,” ASU coach Sheila McInerney said. “It was important that we went up there and had two wins. Now we just have to continue to keep being tough and keep the momentum going.”

The Tigers have struggled against big-name schools but defeated Arkansas Tech on Feb. 27 to end a four-dual losing streak.

The Sun Devils have won three straight with strong doubles play and quick starts, which were key in the Sun Devils’ last two victories.

After winning the doubles point against UW, singles victories by junior Micaela Hein and sophomore Sianna Simmons quickly put ASU up 3-1 on the Huskies.

“Getting off to a good start with some of these kids and keeping the foot on the gas pedal helped,” McInerney said.

ASU junior Kelcy McKenna was able to clinch the victory shortly after Simmons’ win.

No. 104 McKenna has been playing better since moving down to the No. 3 spot. She had been ranked as high as No. 7 this season.

“Obviously, she had two good wins for us this weekend,” McInerney said. “It’s not easy to win anywhere in the lineup, quite frankly. There are different pressures in every spot.”

Four Sun Devils won both of their matches against UW and WSU, including sophomore Michelle Brycki and Simmons in the No. 5 and No. 6 spots.

“I certainly don’t think we are overconfident in any of the positions,” McInerney said. “Let’s face it — you just have to go out there every day and just battle. Do we have confidence in Michelle and Sianna? Absolutely. But we have confidence in all the kids.”

Following Memphis on Wednesday, ASU will play against four Pac-10 schools over six duals, with three of them ranked in the top 15.

The Pac-10 has seven total teams ranked, led by No. 2 UCLA, No. 8 California, No. 11 Stanford, No. 13 USC, No. 16 Washington, No. 32 ASU and No. 59 Arizona.

The Sun Devils moved up 12 spots after defeating UW, then ranked No. 18.

“It only gets tougher from here on in, which is good,” McInerney said.

Reach the reporter at nathan.meacham@asu.edu


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