Another match, another ranked win for JJ Van Niel's Sun Devils. A Sunday victory on the road over #17 Kansas marked their eighth top-25 win of the season and moved Arizona State to 15-3 overall (6-1 in conference).
After falling behind two sets to none to the Jayhawks, the Sun Devils rallied in a big way, taking a tightly contested third set by pulling away in the last few points. Another extremely close set in the fourth, Arizona State closed on a 6-1 run to force the decisive set. With that momentum, they started hot in the final set, going up 7-2 quickly. Kansas was able to rally momentarily, but in the end the #8 Sun Devils were able to complete the reverse sweep, via a final score of 17-25, 14-25, 25-22, 25-20, 15-10.
Busy Week
It was Arizona State's third win in seven days, after picking up a win the Sunday prior over then No. 8 TCU, 3-0, followed by beating in-state rival Arizona, 3-1, in front of a packed house at Desert Financial Arena. That same night, JJ Van Niel recorded his 100th victory as head coach at Arizona State, the fastest to do so in program history.
How They Got Here
Overall, it's a six-game win streak currently for Arizona State, and they have won 10 of their last 11 matches. It's not just a blip on the radar, though, as the Sun Devils burst onto the scene right away this season, with a win over then-No. 2 Texas in the opening match of the year. They then followed it up with a win over another perennial powerhouse, Minnesota, in a 3-0 sweep.
They fell in their next contest to USC, and then after a weekend sweep in Hamilton, NY, over Colgate, Princeton, and Villanova, all by a score of 3-0, they hit a lull, falling at home to unranked UC Davis for just their third loss in Tempe in the last four seasons.
Since then, they have been on fire, as during the 10-1 streak, the Sun Devils have knocked off five ranked opponents, dropping just 13 sets total in that span. Their lone loss, on the road to West Virginia, was a 5-setter that ASU led 2-1 at one point before dropping the fourth-set tiebreak 26-24 and the fifth set 15-12.
It's been a dynamic duo of Noemie Glover and Una Vajagic who have done the heavy lifting up front, as their 3.93 and 3.69 kills per set, respectively, lead the team. Aniya Clinton, with 2.69, is third on the squad.
What's Next?
There's hardly ever any reprieve in Big 12 play, as with six teams ranked inside the top 25, it's a constant test for even the top of the conference. The Sun Devils enter the weekend as the top-ranked team in the conference, but will have to earn that top spot on the road. First, a clash Thursday with Utah, who's just outside the top 25, before a massive tilt Saturday with #11 BYU in Provo. The Cougars are the lone unbeaten team in conference play at 7-0, and are on a 12-game winning streak. Their lone loss on the season came to #2 Pittsburgh on Sept. 4. The winner will likely hold first place in the conference after the weekend, and as back-to-back regular season champions, Arizona State would certainly love to regain that spot. That match will begin at 5:30 MST on Saturday, Oct. 24.
After the massive weekend, the Sun Devils will get about as light a schedule as you can ask for in the Big 12, seeing just three currently ranked opponents in their final nine games, with two of them being on the road. With no conference tournament, the Sun Devils will then turn their focus to a likely NCAA tournament bid and try to improve on their second-and third-round exits over the last three seasons.
Add us as a preferred source on Google