TEMPE, Ariz.—The No. 21 Arizona State volleyball team (18-7, 7-7 Pac-12) returns to the road this weekend for a Thursday tilt at Colorado (14-12, 6-8 Pac-12) and a Saturday match at Utah (9-16, 3-11 Pac-12) in Bounder, Colo., and Salt Lake City, respectively.
Both matches will start at 7 p.m. MT and will be live streamed via CUBuffs.com and UtahUtes.com, respectively.
Updates throughout the Sun Devils’ matches will also be available via Twitter by following @SunDevilVB.
ABOUT THE BUFFALOES (NOV. 12, 7 p.m. MT)
Colorado dropped both its road matches last week, falling to UCLA in straight sets and USC in four.
Alexis Austin led the way against the Bruins with 13 kills, while Joslyn Hayes added nine on .364 attacking. Against the Trojans, Austin had 13 kills, while Gabby Simpson added 10.
The Sun Devils and Buffaloes last met on Oct. 24 in Tempe, when Whitney Follette recorded her 400th career block in the four-set victory. Bree Bailey led the way with 16 kills on .483 attacking, while Jasmine Koonts matched her career best with five kills on .500 hitting.
ABOUT THE UTES (NOV. 14, 7 p.m. MT)
Utah fell on the road to the Bruins in four sets before being swept by USC last week.
Adora Anae led Utah with 12 kills against UCLA, while Eliza Katoa added 10 on .556 attacking (0 errors, 18 attempts). Emma Kirst and Brenna DeYoung combined for eight blocks in the match. Against USC, Berkeley Oblad hit .600 with 10 kills.
ASU swept Utah in the last meeting, on Oct. 23 in Tempe, Whitney Follette leading the way with 10 kills, while Bree Bailey added nine. Jasmine Koonts and Mercedes Binns both had five kills on .444 attacking.
LAST TIME OUT
The Sun Devils split their home matches last week, falling to Washington in three before outlasting Washington State in four sets. Against the Cougars, Cassidy Pickrell led the Sun Devils with 17 kills and 21 digs, while Lexi MacLean posted her first career double-double with 13 kills and 14 digs.
Bianca Arellano posted her team-leading 10th double-double with 28 assists and 13 digs, while Kylie Pickrell was one dig away from a double-double with nine and 23 assists. Mercedes Binns posted 12 kills on .409 attacking.
UP NEXT
Next week, the Sun Devils return home for the last time in the regular season, hosting UCLA and USC on Friday, Nov. 20 and Sunday, Nov. 22, respectively.
The match against the Bruins is set for a 7 p.m. MT start on the Pac-12 Networks, and will feature a recognition of the program’s senior class: Bianca Arellano, Whitney Follette, Macey Gardner, Andi Lowrance, Mercedes Binns, and manager Whitney Perkins.
Sunday’s home finale against the Trojans will start at 1 p.m. MT and will be live streamed on TheSunDevils.com.
WATSON ONE WIN AWAY FROM 200
As of Nov. 10, 2015, head coach Jason Watson is one win away from reaching his 200th victory as a head coach. Watson had 74 wins in three seasons at BYU (2005-07) and 125 in eight seasons at Arizona State (2008-present).
BINNS ENTERS BLOCK ASSIST TOP-10
On Sunday, Nov. 8, Mercedes Binns recorded two blocks in the win over Washington State, including one block assist to give her 258 in her career, tying her for No. 10 all-time at ASU with Kirstin Mattson, who amassed the same amount from 1993-97.
She joins Whitney Follette, whose career total of 336 block assists is No. 2 all-time.
FOLLETTE FOURTH SUN DEVIL WITH 400 BLOCKS
On Saturday, Oct. 24, Whitney Follette recorded her 400th career block to win the fourth set and the match against Colorado, making her just the fourth Sun Devil in program history to total 400 career blocks.
Within that total, she has 336 block assists to her name, which sits at No. 2 all-time in ASU lore, 42 behind Tina Berg’s (1987-90) program-leading career mark of 378.
Berg also owns the total blocks record with 530.
ARELLANO FOURTH SETTER TO 3000 ASSISTS
In just three seasons with the Sun Devils, setter Bianca Arellano has amassed 3,041 career assists, which sits at No. 4 in the ASU all-time list.
For 28 years, Regina Stahl (1984-87) has held the school record for assists at 5,180. The only other Sun Devil to record more than 4,000 assists was Cheryl Anglin (2000-03), while Marina Mercer (2006-09) sits at No. 3 all-time at 3,680 assists.
ASU IN THE AVCA POLL
The Sun Devils came into the Nov. 9 AVCA Division I Volleyball Poll ranked at No. 21.
On Monday, Oct. 6, the Sun Devils earned the highest ranking in program history, No. 5.
BEST STARTS IN ASU HISTORY
ASU opened the 2015 season with 15 straight wins, marking the second best start in program history, behind ASU’s 21-0 season in 1973.
1. 1973: 21-0 (Mary Littlewood, Intermountain Conference)
2. 2015: 15-0 (Jason Watson, Pac-12 Conference)
3. 1976: 11-0 (Mary Littlewood, Intermountain Conference)
4. 1985: 9-0 (Debbie Brown, Pacific West Conference)
5. 1981: 8-0 (Dale Flickinger, WCAA)
1992: 8-0 (Patti Snyder-Park, Pac-10 Conference)
ASU OPENS PAC-12 WITH BEST START SINCE JOINING LEAGUE
The Sun Devils opened the 2015 Pac-12 slate with a 4-0 start with wins over Arizona, Oregon State, Stanford, and California, marking the best start since ASU joined the Pac-10 Conference in 1986, where the team went 3-0.
It also marked the first time ASU has swept back-to-back conference weekends since 2004: at Oregon (Oct. 8, 3-1) & at Oregon State (Oct. 9, 3-0) and vs. Washington (Oct. 15, 3-0) and vs. Washington State (Oct. 15, 3-2).
ASU’S TOP PAC-10/12 STARTS
2015 - ASU def. Arizona (3-1), Oregon State (3-0), Stanford (3-1, California (3-0)
1986 - ASU def. Oregon (3-2), Oregon State (3-2), USC (3-1)
1989 - ASU def. Oregon (3-1), Oregon State (3-0)
1994 - ASU def. Oregon (3-0), Oregon State (3-2)
1999 - ASU def. Oregon (3-0), Oregon State (3-0)
ASU DEFEATS BAY AREA SCHOOLS ON SAME WEEKEND FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 1993
The last time ASU defeated both Stanford and California on the same weekend was in 1993. Those matches were also won at home, with the Sun Devils sweeping both schools.
ALL-AMERICAN MACEY GARDNER OUT FOR THE YEAR
Due to an ACL injury sustained at the match against Washington on Oct. 11, senior All-American Macey Gardner will miss the rest of the 2015 season, head coach Jason Watson announced.
Prior to the injury, Gardner was the AVCA national and Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after she broke the 20-year-old school kill record in the team’s three-set win over California. Gardner recorded nine kills, including the record-breaker, in the third set. She will wrap her career with 1,882 kills, 11 ahead of the previous record.
MACEY GARDNER BREAKS ASU’S 20-YEAR-OLD KILL RECORD
On Sunday, Oct. 4, Gardner broke Christine Garner’s 20-year-old school record of 1,871 in the 3-0 sweep over Cal. In the win, Gardner recorded 14 kills, including nine in the third set, bringing ASU’s new best to 1,873 and counting.
ASU TOP-3 CAREER KILLS
1. Macey Gardner, 2012-present (1,882)
2. Christine Garner, 1992-95 (1,871)
3. Sarah Reaves, 2007-10 (1,796)
GARDNER NAMED SPORTS IMPORTS/AVCA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Macey Gardner was named the Sports Imports/AVCA Player of the Week, the American Volleyball Coaches Association announced on Tuesday, Oct. 6.
Gardner, a 2014 AVCA All-American, is the first Sun Devil to earn national honors from the AVCA since Amanda Burbridge was recognized on Oct. 23, 2000. The third ASU athlete to earn AVCA accolades was Christine Garner on Oct. 16, 1995. Burbridge and Garner also earned AVCA All-America honors during their Sun Devil careers.
GARDNER NAMED PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After leading the Arizona State volleyball team to its first win over then-No. 8 Stanford in 15 years and breaking the 20-year-old school kills record in the win over California, senior outside hitter Macey Gardner was named Pac-12 Offensive Player Of The Week, the league office announced on Monday, Oct. 5.
This is Gardner’s fourth career honor and the first since the 2013 season. Gardner also was named Player of the Week twice in 2012. Gardner and Garner both received four league honors during their careers, tied for the most in program history.
THE GARDNER-GARNER CONNECTION
Dating back to the beginning of the 2012 season, the Sun Devils have won 77 matches, the most since ASU won 80 matches from the 1992-95 seasons.
On the team from 1992-95 - ASU’s previous kills record-holder, Christine Garner (1,871).
The 2015 Sun Devils are on pace to match or surpass that mark of 80 wins in four seasons, while Macey Gardner broke Garner’s 20-year-old record on Sunday, Oct. 4, against California.
Since the first year of the program--42 years ago--the Sun Devils have won 75 or more matches 12 times, and 80 or more seven times. The most matches ASU has won in a four-season span is 85, which ASU did three times: between 1985-88, 1982-85, and 1980-83.
1,000+ CAREER KILLS & DIGS
Against Northern Arizona (Sept. 8), Macey Gardner became the 10th Sun Devil to record more than 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in their career, the 17th to surpass the career mark of 1,000 digs.
Gardner has 1,090 digs, all time.
The last Sun Devil to move onto the list of 1,000 and 1,000 was Margie Giordano (2005-08), with 1,312 career kills and 1,218 career digs, while the last Sun Devil to enter the 1,000+ career digs list was libero Stephanie Preach, who totaled 2,010 from 2010-13, second-most all time at ASU.
SUN DEVILS SET WATSON-ERA ATTENDANCE RECORD AGAINST ARIZONA
In the win over Pac-12 rival Arizona on Sept. 24, the Sun Devils set a new top-attendance in head coach Jason Watson’s tenure with 5,152 fans, surpassing the 2014 record of 4,185 fans against Washington (Oct. 17).
Additionally, the Sun Devils recorded a new student-section record on Sept. 24 with 2,011 fans.
Four of the top-10 Watson-era attendances have been against Arizona, while the remaining six have come in matches against Washington (2014), USC (2013), Stanford (2015), California (2015), Oregon State (2014), and Colorado (2015).
The program’s attendance record was set on Oct. 4, 1968 at 8,516 when ASU hosted Stanford.
A complete list of attendances and match dates is available on page 4 of the attached notes PDF.
ASU SECURES FIRST TERRITORIAL CUP SERIES OPPORTUNITY
With the four-set win over the rival Wildcats on Sept. 24, the Sun Devils secured the first half-point up for grabs in the annual Territorial Cup Series ® with Arizona.
In 2014-15, the Sun Devils won the Territorial Cup Series® for the second straight year, 12.5-7.5. ASU was helped by the 6-point sweep from the track and field and cross country teams.
ASU and UA’s sports teams will compete against one another in 20 common varsity intercollegiate sports. For a school to be the winner of the Territorial Cup Series Trophy, they must accumulate 10.5 points.
ASU PICKED TO FINISH SECOND IN THE PAC-12
For the first time since 1994, the Sun Devils were picked to finish second in the Pac-12 Conference in the preseason coaches poll, while returning AVCA All-American Macey Gardner was named to the Pac-12 Preseason Team for the third time in her career.
ON THE PAC-12 SLATE
ASU hosts Utah and Colorado to round out the first half of conference action before taking on a pair of midweek road matches at Stanford and California, followed by a return trip home to host the Washington schools in the first week of November.
The Sun Devils hit the road to face Colorado and Utah before rounding out the regular season home slate against UCLA and USC on Nov. 20 and 22, before finishing off the regular season at Oregon on Nov. 25 and at Arizona on Nov. 27.
ON THE RETURNERS
Leading the Sun Devils this season are the class of five seniors: outside hitter Macey Gardner, setter Bianca Arellano, middle blocker Whitney Follette, middle blocker Mercedes Binns, and outside hitter Andi Lowrance.
Starting in each set and each match last season, AVCA All-American Gardner led the way with 594 kills—No. 2 in the single season top-10 at ASU, while Arellano added 1417 assists and a team-leading 28 service aces. Also getting the start in each of the 34 matches was Binns, who added 278 kills and 109 total blocks.
Follette missed action during the non-conference portion of the season and the beginning of last year’s Pac-12 slate, but returned strong and finished the year with 181 kills and 87 blocks, while Lowrance earned seven starts and appeared in 13 more matches, totaling 61 kills and 31 blocks.
Also back in action for ASU is sophomore libero Halle Harker, junior defensive specialist Mia Mazon, junior outside hitter Kizzy Ricedorff (Willey), and junior outside hitter Bree Bailey.
Harker finished her freshman season with 521 digs, the No. 10 mark in the single-season list, also the freshman record. Harker also recorded a career best total of 34 digs against Oregon on Nov. 15, the highest single-game total for a freshman. Harker is on pace to become the 17th Sun Devil to surpass the 1,000-dig milestone.
Bailey and Ricedorff combined for the rest of the Sun Devil offence with 527 kills. Ricedorff also added 13 aces and 44 blocks, while Bailey added 17 aces and 98 blocks. In her first year with the Sun Devils, Mazon saw action in 24 matches to boost the ASU defense.
ON THE NEWCOMERS
The Sun Devils welcome six newcomers to the roster in 2015, freshmen Kierstin Fowler (Flagstaff, Ariz./Coconino HS), Kylie Pickrell (Coppell, Texas/Coppell HS), Jasmine Koonts (Houston, Texas/Klein HS), Lexi MacLean (Frisco, Texas/Centennial HS), and Tia Philippart (Carlsbad, Calif./La Costa Canyon HS), and junior transfer Cassidy Pickrell (Coppell, Texas/Coppell HS/UC Irvine).
ASU looks to add depth in the middle with the additions of Fowler, Koonts, and Philippart. On the outside, ASU adds MacLean and Cassidy Pickrell, a transfer from UC Irvine, while her younger sister Kylie Pickrell joins the Sun Devils as a setter.
2015 All-Tournament Team Selections
Falcon Classic
MVP - Whitney Follette
All-Tournament Team - Kizzy Ricedorff (Willey)
All-Tournament Setter - Kylie Pickrell
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