(Photo: Tyler Rittenhouse/WCSN)
The Arizona State Sun Devils (10-7, 0-5 Pac-12) will host the USC Trojans (12-4, 4-1 Pac-12) at 6 p.m. on Saturday evening in Wells Fargo Arena.
Riding a five-game losing streak with zero Pac-12 wins, the Sun Devils will have their work cut out for them against the Trojans, who have a winning Pac-12 record. The team generates a quick offense with hitter Khalia Lanier leading the team with 251 kills and 22 service aces this season. The Trojans also move the ball quickly, and they utilize the whole court when deciding how to send balls over the net. Their tempo will challenge the Sun Devils and force the team to move around the court to have successful coverage.
“We run a really fast offense, and theirs is twice as fast as ours,” ASU libero Hale Harker said. “I think defensively we just have to make sure we’re in the right spots and stay disciplined on that.”
While the Sun Devils have a defensive threat in Harker, who is currently third on ASU’s career digs list, the team still struggles with reception errors and serve receive. Their struggles, especially in serve receive, could potentially be a huge advantage for their opposition. The Trojans have 80 total service aces on the season, which is 30 more than the Sun Devils. If ASU can’t find success in serve receive during the match, they will most likely fail to keep up with USC’s tempo. The Trojans also have 17 less reception errors on the season than the Sun Devils.
“We have to serve tough. If they pass perfectly, we’re in trouble,” ASU head coach Sanja Tomasevic said. “Right now, there is no way for us to beat USC if we don’t give them trouble serving.”
ASU is still making changes to their front line, which occasionally causes inconsistency on their side of the net. They often switch between freshman setters Nicole Peterson and Shelbie Dobmeier. Dobmeier got the start against UCLA on Friday, but they team is still looking to see who can successfully run the offense.
“Consistency is a big key,” Tomasevic said. “What comes to my mind is consistency and leadership. That’s our quarterback, so we’re looking for one of them to step up.”
ASU’s setters will look to offensive leaders Oluoma Okaro and Ivana Jeremic to deliver kills that can aid in creating that consistency in offense that the Sun Devils need. Okaro leads the team with 272 kills. Jeremic is second with 169 kills. The duo’s resilience at the net will greatly affect how the Sun Devils are able to match the offensive power that the Trojans will bring.
