Arizona State’s DeVera Stumbles but Refuses to Fall

Arizona State senior Faye DeVera struggled mightily through six sets, but the former Villa Park High standout advanced to the third round of the Intercollegiate Tennis Assn. tournament Friday at UC Irvine.

DeVera defeated Agnieszka Abram of Nevada Las Vegas, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (6), in the morning and then hung on in the afternoon to beat Jennifer Mitchell of Loyola Marymount, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3).

“I know it must have been tough for the people watching,” DeVera said, “because I was ready to pull my hair out.”

DeVera, who helped Arizona State reach the NCAA quarterfinals last year, admitted she is not in top form.

“I’ve been working hard in practice, but I haven’t had many matches,” said DeVera, who plays Abram again today in the round of 16. “Mentally, I just kind of crash out there.”

DeVera, ranked 47th in the NCAA preseason singles rankings, had enough talent and perseverance to pull out both matches, but she’s happy the regular season doesn’t begin until January.

“I need to get into my best physical condition,” DeVera said. “A lot of people might think I’m getting senioritis, but that would be a waste. I didn’t play much my freshman year, so I want to get three good years in.”

San Diego State junior Katey Becker, DeVera’s former doubles partner at Villa Park, was ousted in the second round by Michelle Gough of Arizona, 6-4, 6-3. Becker defeated Stephanie Westrich of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the first round, 6-1, 6-0.

“I didn’t play much over the summer,” Becker said, “so I need to get back into the swing of playing matches.”

In other singles play, USC’s Melissa Esmero (Mater Dei) defeated UCI’s Amy Tranckino, 6-2, 6-1, but lost to Lindsay Blau of Arizona, 6-2, 6-3, in the second round. Jonni Seymour of UC Irvine lost in the first round to Megan Yeats of Arizona State, 6-3, 6-4, and her teammate, Natalie Exon, lost in the first round to Sylvia Tomier of San Diego State, 6-1, 6-2.

Arizona’s Brooke Taylor (Newport Harbor) defeated UCI’s Darian Chappell, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, but then fell to Pepperdine’s Paola Palencia, 6-1, 6-0.