ASU Volleyball: Sun Devils open Rebel Classic with five-set win

(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)

Arizona State (7-3) defeated UNLV (3-7) in a competitive five sets (21-25, 25-19, 25-16, 20-25, 15-9) at the Cox Pavilion on Thursday night. The Sun Devils began the Rebel Challenge, with a 3-2 win.

Outside hitter Andrea Mitrovic had a phenomenal match leading the Sun Devils in kills, hitting percentage, scoring, and service aces. Additionally, setter Callie Jones, achieved a double-double with 30 assists and a career-high 15 digs.

After a delay due to technical difficulties with the lights at Cox Pavilion, the fifth set began with a replay which initially had been a kill for the Rebels but was challenged by Arizona State. Mitrovic produced the first three points of the set all through kills. The momentum had shifted following the call being reversed on the first play and thus, after switching sides at eight points, the Sun Devils led the final set 8-4 and never gave up the lead.

Power hitters of the match, leading their teams in kills, included outside hitters Mariena Hayden (10) for the Rebels and Mitrovic (16) for the Sun Devils. Mitrovic also led her team in highest hitting percentage with a .483 clip. Kennedi Boyd, Avital Jaloba, and Ivana Jeremic also all hit above .300 for the Sun Devils.

Libero Courtney Leffel had 20 digs for Arizona State and outside hitter Shelby Capllonch led the Rebels with 11 digs. Leading their teams in blocks, Macy Smith produced 4 for the Rebels and Joloba totaled 5 for the Sun Devils.

Arizona State had trouble keeping up with UNLV in the first set and was never able to take the lead, falling behind 21-25. The Rebels’ Erin Davis ended the set with a kill, totaling four in the opening set. Several errors were made by both teams, specifically running into difficulty with serving and serve receive.

Both Arizona State and UNLV had multiple out of system plays which made it strenuous for hitters to swing their best in various plays. The Sun Devils offense used a variety of methods to succeed all night, with the team hitting .321 for the night. The Rebels, instead, focused more on power hitting constantly throughout the first set.

After dropping the first set, Arizona State immediately took control in the second. The Sun Devils took control of the second set with a 6-2 run in the middle of the set. Freshman middle blocker Kennedi Boyd ended the set with a kill, with a final score of 25-19.

The Sun Devils continued to stay in the lead, maintaining their momentum in the third set. At game point, Annika Larson subbed in to serve and finished the set with a service ace. The Rebels had difficulty recovering from the loss in set two. With the Rebels making multiple sloppy passes, UNLV’s offense hit at a .197 clip.

After two straight set losses the Rebels took the lead in the fourth set, showing some resilience. UNLV began to move much more fluidly as one unit, offensively and defensively. Arizona State’s defense remained strong, but their offense had some difficulty as hitters began to hit out of bounds or into the block. The Rebels’ middle Blocker, Kate Brennan, ended the set with a kill.

ASU’s fifth-set win was its second five-set win this season, after defeating LSU in five sets on August 31.

The Sun Devils’ win improves their record to 7-3. ASU will take on the University of Kansas on Friday at 3:30 p.m., in the final non-conference match of 2019.