(Photo: Ryan Bafaloukos/WCSN)
The No. 19 Arizona State Sun Devils look to get back on track as they continue Pac-12 play against the dangerous No. 9 USC Trojans in Los Angeles. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. PT and can be watched on the Pac-12 Network.
The Sun Devils ended up taking a hard-fought loss at the hands of their rival Arizona Wildcats in five sets (25-21, 22-25, 21-25, 27-25, 13-15) on Wednesday despite career-highs from star junior outside hitter Macey Gardner and junior setter Bianca Arellano.
Gardner played out of her mind as she posted 30 kills – 10 of them coming in the fourth set – to join Sarah Reeves as the only ASU volleyball players with 30 kills in a match since 2000. Arellano also had herself a night, tallying 61 assists but it was not enough against the resilient Wildcats, who had an answer for everything the Sun Devils were hitting at them.
The battle-tested Trojans limp into this contest losers of four of their last five matches. Don’t let that fool you, however, as these came against the toughest teams the NCAA has to offer – No. 22 Texas A&M, No. 10 Florida, No. 5 Wisconsin and fellow Pac-12 team No. 20 UCLA. USC is still looking for their first home victory of the season and they hope it can come tonight against ASU.
Players To Watch
In addition to Gardner’s thunderous kills, watch for who gets the start at the second middle blocker spot between redshirt freshman Kwyn Johnson and junior Andi Lowrance. The team’s success hinges on these players’ performance during injured junior middle blocker Whitney Follette’s absence. When they play well, the entire team seems to be in sync and in a rhythm. Another player to watch is junior middle blocker Mercedes Binns, who has really stepped up and become the brick wall of the ASU blocking presence. She will need to be on her game tonight if the Sun Devils want a shot at the upset.
On the other side of the court, the Trojans have a couple young and hungry outside hitters, junior Samantha Bricio and sophomore Ebony Nwanebu, who are dominating if they get into a rhythm. Nwanebu especially needs to get into a groove if she wants to break the Trojans’ woes. Her struggles recently, posting a measly six kills and a .071 hitting percentage against UCLA, have hurt the team and are of part the reason they are in this slump. Bricio is known for having one of the best serves in the country, and she is third in the country in service aces with 37.
Prediction
Bricio and Nwanebu will have huge bounce-back games, racking up kill after kill against this ASU defensive front, and the Sun Devils will have no answer. Gardner will do all she can but the five set marathon against Arizona will have her team a little worn out. The Women of Troy will prevail in the back-and-forth first set on their way to cruising to a easy sweep.
