Iowa State faces Iowa this Wednesday in Iowa City. Both teams are 2-1, and each will enter off losses from their most recent matches.
The Cyclones and Hawkeyes have faced 43 times in their history. Against Iowa, Iowa State holds a record of 10-33 all-time.
In the most recent showdown, Iowa beat Iowa State 5-2 in Urbandale. However, the last time the Cyclones faced Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa State won 4-0.
This Iowa State team is not the same one that Iowa beat last year. After a season of rebuilding, the Cyclones have put together a strong team with a talented young core and veteran leadership.
Senior Anna Supapitch Kuearum will play in her second match of the season and could notch her third Hawkeye victory in three years. Kuearum had a strong debut against Minnesota, winning in both doubles and singles.
Kuearum is currently ranked No. 64 in the country for singles and will likely face one of Iowa’s two-ranked players.
The Hawkeyes have juniors No. 75 Tereza Dejnozkova and No. 89 Daianne Hayashida. Dejnozkova finished third at the ITA Central Regionals in October, the highest finish by an Iowa tennis player.
Hayashida posted a team-best seven singles wins in the fall, with a 7-3 record overall. She also earned All-Big Ten recognition as a sophomore.
Iowa has strong players filling out its roster but two players for the Cyclones can help. Freshmen Julia Camblor and Suzanie Pretorius are looking to continue their strong starts to the season. On Sunday, both Camblor and Pretorius won their singles matches versus Minnesota.
Camblor and Pretorius can both improve their singles records to 3-0 with wins against the Hawkeyes.
If the Cyclones prevail in this hard-fought rivalry, it will be a signature win under second-year head coach Jaron Maestas and a huge boost to an already promising team.
The Cy-Hawk match will be live-streamed on Iowa’s tennis website at 5 p.m. Wednesday.