by Emily Ducker, Sun Devil media relations intern
BERKELEY, Calif. -- The Arizona State volleyball team (10-4, 1-1 Pac-12) defeated the California Golden Bears (8-5, 0-2) in a gritty five-set match (25-20, 25-27, 25-22, 21-25, 18-16) Sunday at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif. The win was the Sun Devils' first in Pac-12 play since Nov. 26, 2016 against Arizona and the first of head coach Sanja Tomasevic's career.
"I'm happy for the girls," Tomasevic said. "They worked really hard and they put themselves out there. I'm happy for them to feel the taste of their first Pac-12 win because that is definitely a different feeling and it's something special that they earned."
Both teams traded points throughout the second set, tying things up at 12 different points throughout the battle before Cal pulled away to take the set, 27-25.
The Sun Devils struck back in the third set, claiming a 25-22 victory on the shoulders of junior Ivana Jeremic with four kills and one service ace on the set, aided by 12 California errors.
The match was a battle until the very end, with the Sun Devils and Bears effectively trading points throughout, tying at 16 before a kill by senior Alyse Ford sealed the victory for ASU.
Many Sun Devils contributed to the lengthy effort. Jeremic recorded 17 kills, 1 assist and 11 digs, good for a double-double. That makes seven on the season for the Serbian, good for second-most in the Pac-12. Peterson tied a career-high of 10 kills and provided 7 assists and 7 digs. Ford also tied her previous career high of 16 kills along with 1 dig. Sophomore Megan Beedie added an additional 10 kills and 1 dig for the Sun Devils, and junior libero Halle Johnson provided 20 digs and 2 assists through the effort.
"We experimented with a different lineup today and everybody did a great job. Ivana, Alyse and Megan numbers-wise had a really good match but I would say that in general everybody stepped up, everybody did their job," Tomasevic said. "Nicole Peterson pretty much played every position on the court except middle blocker. These kids are willing to do whatever it takes to win and that's something that's really special about this group."
The Golden Bears were led by sophomores Preslie Anderson with 12 kills, 1 assist and 4 digs and Mima Mikovic with 11 kills, 1 assist and 12 digs.
Next up, the Sun Devils head to Oregon to take on the Oregon State Beavers (10-4, 0-2) Friday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. and the Oregon Ducks (9-3, 2-0) at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 30. Friday's match will be broadcast on Pac-12 Networks.
BERKELEY, Calif. -- The Arizona State volleyball team (10-4, 1-1 Pac-12) defeated the California Golden Bears (8-5, 0-2) in a gritty five-set match (25-20, 25-27, 25-22, 21-25, 18-16) Sunday at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif. The win was the Sun Devils' first in Pac-12 play since Nov. 26, 2016 against Arizona and the first of head coach Sanja Tomasevic's career.
"I'm happy for the girls," Tomasevic said. "They worked really hard and they put themselves out there. I'm happy for them to feel the taste of their first Pac-12 win because that is definitely a different feeling and it's something special that they earned."
The Sun Devils took an early lead in the first set, pulling to 13-4 before the Golden Bears began to even things out, coming within three of ASU at 14-11. Led through the set by junior Nicole Peterson with four kills and two service aces, the Sun Devils took the set at a comfortable 25-20.?? HUGE DUB ?? pic.twitter.com/hCtQkbWOs5
— Sun Devil Volleyball (@SunDevilVB) September 23, 2018
Both teams traded points throughout the second set, tying things up at 12 different points throughout the battle before Cal pulled away to take the set, 27-25.
The Sun Devils struck back in the third set, claiming a 25-22 victory on the shoulders of junior Ivana Jeremic with four kills and one service ace on the set, aided by 12 California errors.
The Golden Bears took set four, 25-21, to even things at two sets each.Jeremic with another HUGE SPIKE!
— Sun Devil Volleyball (@SunDevilVB) September 23, 2018
S3 | 22-20 Sun Devils
??: Pac-12 Arizona pic.twitter.com/BQqGupcM8U
The match was a battle until the very end, with the Sun Devils and Bears effectively trading points throughout, tying at 16 before a kill by senior Alyse Ford sealed the victory for ASU.
Many Sun Devils contributed to the lengthy effort. Jeremic recorded 17 kills, 1 assist and 11 digs, good for a double-double. That makes seven on the season for the Serbian, good for second-most in the Pac-12. Peterson tied a career-high of 10 kills and provided 7 assists and 7 digs. Ford also tied her previous career high of 16 kills along with 1 dig. Sophomore Megan Beedie added an additional 10 kills and 1 dig for the Sun Devils, and junior libero Halle Johnson provided 20 digs and 2 assists through the effort.
"We experimented with a different lineup today and everybody did a great job. Ivana, Alyse and Megan numbers-wise had a really good match but I would say that in general everybody stepped up, everybody did their job," Tomasevic said. "Nicole Peterson pretty much played every position on the court except middle blocker. These kids are willing to do whatever it takes to win and that's something that's really special about this group."
The Golden Bears were led by sophomores Preslie Anderson with 12 kills, 1 assist and 4 digs and Mima Mikovic with 11 kills, 1 assist and 12 digs.
Next up, the Sun Devils head to Oregon to take on the Oregon State Beavers (10-4, 0-2) Friday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. and the Oregon Ducks (9-3, 2-0) at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 30. Friday's match will be broadcast on Pac-12 Networks.