The ASU women’s volleyball team suffered their second straight loss on the second day of the 2017 Gonzaga Invitational.
After splitting two games yesterday, the Sun Devils (4-2) came up short against the Portland State University Vikings, losing three sets to one.
ASU was able to keep it close, never losing a set by more than five points, but the Vikings seemed to score when it counted most and finished their first two set wins with 10-4 and 7-3 runs.
ASU head coach Sanja Tomasevic said the team will be using the loss as a lesson.
"As we head back to Tempe and prep for this coming weekend's tournament up north, it's imperative we learn from our mistakes and put this weekend's result in the rear view mirror,” Tomasevic said.
"We are a talented, but young team that's still learning to mesh and compete together,” she said. “We are aiming for continued improvement and growth in the coming weeks and look forward to getting back in the gym on Monday."
The Sun Devils were led by seniors middle blocker Oluoma Okaro and libero Halle Harker.
Okaro led the Sun Devils with 21 kills while Harker picked up 16 of the team’s 49 digs.
Sophomore setter Callie Jones added on 44 assists in the loss as well.
To close out the game, the Vikings took the last set by a score of 25-23 in perhaps the most closely contested set of the match.
Portland State had the lead for most of the early half of the set, but the Sun Devils did not go down easily. ASU tied the game up at 15-15 and did not fall more than one point behind the Vikings until the end of the set.
The Sun Devils were able to grab the lead for a brief moment in the end of the fourth set by a score 23-22.
But after a timeout the Vikings went on a 3-0 run to finish off the set and the match.
The match belonged to the Vikings from the get go, as they held an early lead and did not surrender it until the Sun Devils clawed their way to a 16-15 advantage in the first set.
However, the Vikings quickly came storming back to retake the lead by a score of 17-15 and finished off the Sun Devils with a 10-4 run to close out the first set by a score of 25-21.
ASU showed some life in the second set and traded points with the Vikings until the Sun Devils finished with a 10-3 run.
The momentum was short lived for the Sun Devils as the Vikings took the third set by a score of 25-20, marking the largest margin of victory in any of the sets for the Vikings.
ASU started the set off by jumping out to a 7-3 lead before the Vikings went on a 5-2 run which led to them taking the lead by a score of 13-12.
After taking the lead, the Vikings never gave it back finishing the match on a 7-3 run to put the Sun Devils away.
The Sun Devils will be back on the road next weekend as they compete in the Northern Arizona Tournament.
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