ASU Volleyball: Sun Devils can’t sustain strong start in loss to USC

(Photo via Alyssa Buruato/WCSN)

On Oct. 9, Arizona State women’s volleyball won the first set against USC in impressive manner but could not gather enough momentum to win another set.

The Sun Devils experienced déjá vu on Friday night in Los Angeles, once again starting strong but losing three consecutive sets (25-20, 22-25, 16-25, 19-25) to the Trojans.

The biggest obstacle for ASU was not the athleticism of senior outside hitter Skylar Fields, but the serving of the Trojans. USC would end the match with 11 aces and only five service errors.

At first, ASU was successful in defending against the serve, racking up 21 digs in the first set. But it couldn’t keep up with USC’s hard hitting, only averaging 12.7 digs per set the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, the serving box score was flipped on the Sun Devils’ side, as they mustered up three aces coupled with 10 service errors in the match. They were able to stay close for a majority of their losing sets, but the serving difference proved to be too much.

One major aspect that was different from the match a month ago was the impact of Fields. In Tempe, she dominated the Sun Devils, putting up a career-high 27 kills on a .429 hitting percentage. Fields was still able to tally 21 kills on Friday, but she was much less efficient in her attempts. The AVCA All-American ended the match with a .186 hitting percentage, which can partly be attributed to a season-high 10 attack errors.

Seven of those errors came in the first set, which helped the Sun Devils get out to their early lead. Another reason for the good start was the play of junior outside hitter Marta Levinska. The lefty came out blazing on both sides of the ball with seven kills, six digs, and two blocks in the set alone.

Levinska continued her strong performance the rest of the match, ending with 17 kills, 14 digs and 4 blocks on a .250 hitting percentage.

ASU’s next best shot at winning a set came in the second thanks to an innovative serving strategy. When senior setter Shannon Shields would serve, she frequently went with a float serve that barely got over the net. With USC’s frontline playing farther back, the tactic proved successful in disrupting the Trojans’ rhythm. When Shields was at the helm, the Sun Devils went on a 3-0 run and a 4-0 run, but it still wasn’t enough to win the second set.

One disappointing part of the match for ASU was its inability to take advantage of the Trojans’ slow starts. The Sun Devils had early three-point leads in each of the sets that they lost. The most drastic change of momentum came in the third set when ASU gave up a six-point run after going up 3-0.

ASU will try to avoid another case of déjá vu on Sunday when it faces UCLA, who they lost to in three sets back home on Oct. 7.