(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
From start to finish of Arizona State’s match with Gonzaga, the Sun Devils maintained firm control, defeating the Bulldogs in four sets (25-20, 25-21, 21-25, 25-14).
In each of the first two sets, the Sun Devils never trailed. Early on for the Sun Devils, it was the Megan Beedie show. The sophomore hitter had five kills and a 1.000 hitting percentage in the opening set. Beedie said it was her connection with setter Shelbie Dobmeier that set her up for success.
“I really connected with Shelbie today,” Beedie said. “I think I was more mindful of my approach and where I was on the court. The vibe on the court was really nice and it was just easy.”
The Sun Devils overcame five service errors in the first set, taking an early lead against the Bulldogs. Throughout the match, the Bulldogs showed why they were the last place team in the West Coast Conference, registering 40 attacking errors, helping Arizona State to maintain leads throughout the night.
Gonzaga struck back in the third set, opening up a quick 5-0 lead which they would hold onto to force a fourth set. The Sun Devils closed the door on any hope Gonzaga had of a comeback, dominating the fourth set.
Head coach Sanja Tomasevic said the Sun Devils were caught off guard in the third set as the Bulldogs cleaned up their play.
“The rhythm of the game was so weird,” Tomasevic said. “The first two sets they didn’t show up at all, they gave us so many points and we didn’t have to do anything to get those points.”
In the fourth set, the Sun Devils used a 6-0 run to open up an 11-4 lead which they would ride to a 25-14 fourth set victory. Tomasevic said she prior to the fourth set, she urged the team to lock in and refocus.
“I had to remind them that you’re going to have to go out there and earn your points,” Tomasevic said. “I want us to earn our points because when we get to [conference play] we’re not going to get those. We’re going to have to earn them. Nobody’s going to give us 40 points in the Pac-12.”
The Sun Devils defeated the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks, 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 26-24, 25-17) on Friday morning, helping them open the Sparky Classic with a 2-0 record. In the win, Ivana Jeremic had a team-leading 20 kills and Dobmeier had 48 assists.
ASU’s win keeps their undefeated home record intact, moving them to 5-0 on the year at Wells Fargo Arena. The Sun Devils improve their record to 9-2 for the 2018 season. The Bulldogs fell to 1-4 on the year against Pac-12 schools, and 3-6 overall.
With one game remaining in non-conference play, Tomasevic said she senses a different vibe in this year’s team.
“I love coaching this team this year,” Tomasevic said. “This is a completely different vibe this year. They care, they show up prepared. We’re a young group for the most part… so we’re young, we’re growing into our roles, we’re still trying to figure out who’s that girl that’s going to step up but what I love is this year we have people stepping up in different times.”
The Sun Devils will finish up non-conference play against the Texas State Bobcats in their third and final match of the Sparky Classic, Saturday night at 7 p.m. Texas State defeated Gonzaga in three sets Friday afternoon.
