FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 15, 2022) – Returning to the courts after last playing in New Mexico at the end of October, the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks head to Tempe as they open their regular season against the Arizona State Sun Devils.
Originally scheduled to face UC Davis on Sunday in Tempe, the match was canceled due to COVID-19 issues within the Aggies program. As a result, Monday's game against Arizona State will serve as the program's season opener.
It will be the 26th all-time meeting between the Lumberjacks and Sun Devils, with Northern Arizona looking for its first ever victory over Arizona State. Last season, the Sun Devils defeated the Lumberjacks 7-0 in Tempe with a pair of doubles wins and a sweep in singles play.
Sophomore
Gina Dittmann nearly upset the No. 37-ranked Ilze Hattingh, falling in a third set tiebreaker to conclude the match last season.
With Hattingh, Sammi Hampton and Lauryn John-Baptiste no longer on the roster Marianna Argyrokastriti and Giulia Morlet stand as the top returners for the Sun Devils and enter their sophomore seasons after putting together strong results as freshmen in 2021. Morlet, who finished 8-6 at No. 4 as a freshman last season, won her match over Northern Arizona's
Ava Neyestani last spring, 3-6, 6-0, 6-0 while Argyrokastriti won 6-3, 6-1 at No. 5.
Argyrokastriti finished her first season as a Sun Devil at 14-6 overall while Morlet wrapped up the spring 12-6 overall.
Looking to reload a roster that lost multiple players with national rankings, Arizona State added Sedona Gallagher to the roster as the senior transferred in from Washington. Holding a career record of 56-16 in singles and 50-13 in doubles, Gallagher was an All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention in both 2019 and 2021.
For the Lumberjacks, newcomers
Annabel Davis,
Laura Duhl and
Sofia Markova could make their spring season debuts after competing in the fall.
Monday's match with Arizona State is set for 12 p.m., with
live stats and
video available online.
For updated scores and coverage of the NAU women's tennis team during the spring season, follow the team on
Twitter,
Instagram and
Facebook.
