ASU Volleyball: Sun Devils overcome slow start, survive in five sets against Cougars

(Photo: Trey Lanthier/WCSN)

The No. 17 Arizona State volleyball team capped off its home stand with a notch in the win column as the team came back to steal the match from the unranked Washington State Cougars in five sets (26-28, 21-25, 25-18, 25-23, 15-11). The Sun Devils started off flat by dropping the first couple sets but rebounded and found an offensive rhythm against the upstart Cougar squad in the win.

“It was a character-defining victory for us,”ASU head coach Jason Watson said. “To be able to be down two and come back says a lot about our athletes.”

Momentum was the story of this marathon match and the Sun Devils had a lot of it going into the fifth set, quickly grabbing a 9-4 lead. Long rallies and exhausted players were the theme of the deciding set but ASU emerged the victor in the thriller 15-11.

“After (three-set loss to Washington on Friday), it was a must-win for us,” ASU junior outside hitter Macey Gardner said.

The entire game was changed starting in the third set as ASU flipped the script on the Cougars putting an emphasis on the defensive side of the game, taking a 15-11 lead and holding WSU to a -.095 hitting percentage. Gardner continued to play like a star and lead her team with 16 kills as the Sun Devils bounced back with their backs to the wall with a victory in the third set 25-18.

“Our defensive identity is evolving,” Watson said. “The digs are huge and were huge in this win.”

The Sun Devils continued to feed Gardner in the fourth set but Washington State had an answer to everything ASU was throwing at it, on the way to a commanding 15-11 lead. With the match on the line however, junior middle blocker Whitney Follette had some late blocks and Gardner continued her greatness to jumpstart Arizona State to a 25-23 win.

It was also a milestone day for Gardner, who is now sixth in ASU’s all-time leaders in kills with 1,396.   

The Sun Devils started out very strong in the first set offensively, getting off to an early 15-10 lead on the back of Gardner, who finished with eight kills in the set and 25 kills in the match. WSU ended up mounting a late comeback, with the help of senior outside hitter Jaicee Harris and her six crucial kills, as the Cougars stole the first set out of the Sun Devil’s grasp, 28-26. Harris finished with 20 kills in the match.

The second set started how the first set ended with Harris and Washington State firing on all cylinders, on their way to a quick 15-10 lead. ASU was not finished yet however, tying the game at 20 with a powerful kill by Follette but it was not enough as WSU senior middle blocker Chelsey Bettinson came up big when it mattered most with a kill to finish the set 25-21.

“Defensively, we were battling, but we were not playing long in the first two sets,” Gardner said. “We talked about what we needed to change and we went out there and executed.”

Follette came out struggling a bit in her second game back from  injury with only two kills and a .000 hitting percentage in the first set but recovered in the second set, finishing it with six kills and an improved .308 hitting percentage. She completed the match third on the team in kills with 10 and also tallied a monstrous six blocks.

“How can you not love Follette,” Watson said. “She had key blocks in this match and just loves playing the game of volleyball.”

With the win, the Sun Devils improve to 14-6 on the season and 4-4 in the Pac-12. Today’s game ended their home stand and they will travel to Oregon for the next two games in Pac-12 play as they face Oregon and Oregon State on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

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