Junior libero Stephanie Preach relays commands to a teammate during the Sun Devils’ 3-1 win over Gonzaga on Sept. 15. (Photo by Kyle Newman)After dropping a tough conference opener to rival UA, the ASU volleyball team returns back to Tempe to host its first Pac-12 home game of the season.
“It hurts to lose to Arizona for lots of reasons, but we’ve got to get back in it and we’ve got to do everything we can to go get (a win) on Friday,” coach Jason Watson said.
The Sun Devils (11-3, 0-1 Pac-12) welcome in Washington State (10-3, 0-1 Pac-12), who, like ASU, is entering the game fresh off losses in its respective Pac-12 opener.
When the two teams met last season, the Cougars took both matches from the Sun Devils (3-2, 3-0). Both loses came in the midst of tough losing streaks for ASU last season.
Washington State comes into the game recently dropping their Pac-12 opener to in-state rival No. 5 Washington. The Cougars dropped the match (3-1) to the Huskies on the road in Seattle.
The game against ASU concludes a quick 2-game road trip to WSU before they return home next weekend to face the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country in UCLA and USC.
Leading the Cougars is sophomore outside hitter Jaicee Harris, who currently is tied at 19th in the country in kills per set with a 4.39 average.
WSU excels in blocking — which is bad news for the Sun Devils, since they struggled against UA’s blockers in their loss.
The Cougars’ junior middle hitter Marcelina Glab is tied for sixth in country in blocks per set at 1.59, making scoring over the net difficult for opponents. Sophomore middle blocker Ver’Leea Hardaway also ranks in the top 50 in blocks per set at 1.37.
“We’ve got to be able to pass better,” Watson said. “I think the better we pass, the more we’re in system, and then the better pressure we can put on an opponent’s block. That’s going to be key in having our hitters manage.”
For the Sun Devils, this match marks the beginning of a three-game home stretch over the next two weekends. A win against WSU will be crucial for ASU’s Pac-12 championship hopes, as they have two more tough match-ups against Cal and No. 6 Stanford next weekend.
“It’s huge,” junior libero Stephanie Preach said. “I think every win is huge though, regardless of when it is, so tomorrow will be a big game, but every game is a big game.”
Offensively, no freshman is averaging more kills per set than ASU’s freshman outside hitter Macey Gardner.
Averaging a 4.82 clip, Gardner ranks 5th in the country in the category. Not far behind her is senior outside hitter Erica Wilson, whose 4.26 kills per set places her at 27th in the country in the same category.
The Sun Devils will take on the Cougars on Friday night in hopes of bringing their Pac-12 record to .500.
“We’re ready to get better and by being simple I mean getting stops on defense and getting over on blocks and staying on task,” Wilson said. “It’s another opportunity to get better and another opportunity to get a win.”
Reach the reporter at talopez3@asu.edu
