Oct. 18, 2001
EUGENE, Ore. -- Junior middle blocker Julia Leddy tallied 15 kills and hit at a career .789 clip and sophomore outside hitter Kim Mehlhorn added a match-best 16 kills to lead the Arizona State Sun Devil volleyball team to a commanding 3-0 Pac-10 victory over the host Oregon Ducks Thursday evening at McArthur Court. The Pac-10/Fox Sports Net Volleyball Match of the Week can be viewed on a tape-delay basis Saturday morning at 10 a.m. on Fox Sports Arizona (Channel 34).
The 30-15, 30-24, 30-16, ASU's most decisive win in 2001, ended a six-match Pac-10 losing streak for the Sun Devils, improving their overall record to 6-9, 2-6 in Pac-10 play. The six-match skid was the longest by the program since 1997. The streak extends Oregon's losing streak to nine matches and are now 8-10 overall and 0-8 in Pac-10 play.
Leddy reached double-digits in kills for the ninth time this year and 27th of her career with her 15 tallies Thursday night. Her .789 attack percentage surpassed her previous career high of .714 vs. Washington in 2000. Mehlhorn tallied her fourth consecutive match with double-digits in kills with 16. The sophomore now has 10, 18, 19 and 16 kills in consecutive matches to improve her season kill average to 3.11 per game. Senior Jami Coughlin added her 11th double-double of the year and 53rd of her career with 11 kills and a match-high 15 digs. Setter Cheryl Anglin tallied 42 assists to lead all players.
"This was a match where we showed exactly what we are capable of as a team," said ASU' head coach Patti Snyder-Park. "Kim Mehlhorn and Jami Coughlin took control of this team tonight and really played well. We were aggressive and really fed off of our early leads and never looked back. It was a night where everything was put together and we got that monkey off of our back."
With the Ducks getting only as close as 8-6 early in game one, ASU exploded to take a 17-11 lead and never turned back decisively to take game one 30-15. Using a balanced team attack with three players with four or more kills, the Devils scorched the Ducks by hitting .459 in the opening frame. Sophomore middle blocker Jodi Smith led all players with five kills, while Mehlhorn and Coughlin each added four. While netting only one block through the first 28 points, the Sun Devils used two key blocks by Smith and Coughlin to put away the game.
Locked in a see-saw battle in game two, the Devils trailed for much of the early part of the match until a block by sophomore Mandy Stephens tied the game at 15-15. After changing leads on three occasions, Coughlin connected on consecutive kills to give the Devils a 21-19 lead. Building on the late momentum, Mehlhorn tallied three kills down the stretch to give ASU the 2-0 lead with a 30-24 win. Mehlhorn led all players with seven kills in game two. As a team, ASU continued its solid hitting with a .463 attack percentage.
The Devils closed out the match in convincing fashion to pick up their third three-game sweep of the year. Leddy closed out the match with six kills with no errors and Mehlhorn added five more kills to bring her night total to 16. The Devils wins in game one and game three were the two biggest wins by points so far this year. Smith ended the match with her fourth career service ace.
Oregon was led by a 10-kill effort by outside hitter Stephanie Martin. Lindsay Closs and Monique Tobbagi both added nine each for the Ducks. Outside hitter Lindsay Murphy led Oregon with 13 digs.
ASU is now 25-7 all-time vs. the Ducks, including a pair of three-game wins in 2001. Snyder-Park is now 24-2 in her 13-year career vs. the Ducks, including a 12-1 record in Eugene. The Devils have won 11 consecutive matches at McArthur Court dating back to a 3-1 loss in 1990.
Arizona State will continue its trip on the Oregon Trail with the Oregon State Beavers Friday night at Gill Coliseum. The match with the Beavers (12-4, 5-2) will start at 7 p.m.
--Sun Devil Volleyball--