TUCSON, Ariz. – Despite the high winds and rainy weather, No. 20 Arizona State beach volleyball started the 2020 season with two wins at the Cactus Classic on Saturday, beating San Francisco 4-1 and Boise State 5-0.
"It was good to start the season off with a couple of wins," Arizona State head coach Brad Keenan said. "The USF match was a bit rough with it being our first match of the year, but we really turned it around against Boise State. I'm really happy with the way the team performed, especially in the windy conditions that we were faced with."
Every pair in the first match was brand new for Arizona State (2-0). In the second match, there was another new pair as well. Three Sand Devils made their NCAA beach volleyball debuts: Allyson Eylers, Lexi Sweeney and Sarah Waters.
Game One – Arizona State 4, San Francisco 1
Courts three and five cruised to dominating two-set wins to highlight the match. Cierra Flood and Lauren Weintraub on court four clinched the win for the Sand Devils. Katelyn Carballo and Samantha Plaster took three sets, but they got it done as well.
Results (Order of Finish: 3, 5, 1, 4*, 2)
1) Anna Dalla Vecchia/Laurie McGrath (USF) def. Emily Anderson/Allyson Eylers (ASU) 21-14, 21-15
2) Katelyn Carballo/Samantha Plaster (ASU) def. Lauren Speckman/Emily Zinger (USF) 21-5, 12-21, 15-10
3) Ellyson Lundberg/Maddy Salazar (ASU) def. Shannon Levinson/Ella Reames (USF) 21-14, 21-12
4) Cierra Flood/Lauren Weintraub (ASU) def. Tanner Pemberton/Sophie Sydenham (USF) 21-17, 21-14
5) Kate Baldwin/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) def. Trish Koutsoukos/Katie Wagstaff (USF) 21-8, 21-8
Game Two – Arizona State 5, Boise State 0
The Sun Devils mixed up the lineups a bit in the second match, resulting in the first sweep of the season. Like the first match, Carballo and Plaster won their match in three.
Results (Order of Finish: 3, 2, 4*, 5, 1)
1) Katelyn Carballo/Samantha Plaster (ASU) def. Erin Martin/Lauren Ohlinger (BSU) 18-21, 21-14, 15-10
2) Emily Anderson/Sarah Waters (ASU) def. Jensen Allen/Danielle Boss (BSU) 21-15, 21-19
3) Ellyson Lundberg/Maddy Salazar (ASU) def. Katie Martin/Ellie McDonald (BSU) 21-11, 22-20
4) Kate Baldwin/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) def. Joey Benson/Alyssa Wissinger (BSU) 21-17, 21-18
5) Cierra Flood/Lauren Weintraub (ASU) def. Olivia Bradley/Kylee Johnson (BSU) 22-20, 23-21
Up Next
The Sand Devils will start a string of six-straight matchups with Pac-12 teams, starting with Stanford and Cal next weekend on the road.
"It was good to start the season off with a couple of wins," Arizona State head coach Brad Keenan said. "The USF match was a bit rough with it being our first match of the year, but we really turned it around against Boise State. I'm really happy with the way the team performed, especially in the windy conditions that we were faced with."
Every pair in the first match was brand new for Arizona State (2-0). In the second match, there was another new pair as well. Three Sand Devils made their NCAA beach volleyball debuts: Allyson Eylers, Lexi Sweeney and Sarah Waters.
Game One – Arizona State 4, San Francisco 1
Courts three and five cruised to dominating two-set wins to highlight the match. Cierra Flood and Lauren Weintraub on court four clinched the win for the Sand Devils. Katelyn Carballo and Samantha Plaster took three sets, but they got it done as well.
Results (Order of Finish: 3, 5, 1, 4*, 2)
1) Anna Dalla Vecchia/Laurie McGrath (USF) def. Emily Anderson/Allyson Eylers (ASU) 21-14, 21-15
2) Katelyn Carballo/Samantha Plaster (ASU) def. Lauren Speckman/Emily Zinger (USF) 21-5, 12-21, 15-10
3) Ellyson Lundberg/Maddy Salazar (ASU) def. Shannon Levinson/Ella Reames (USF) 21-14, 21-12
4) Cierra Flood/Lauren Weintraub (ASU) def. Tanner Pemberton/Sophie Sydenham (USF) 21-17, 21-14
5) Kate Baldwin/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) def. Trish Koutsoukos/Katie Wagstaff (USF) 21-8, 21-8
Game Two – Arizona State 5, Boise State 0
The Sun Devils mixed up the lineups a bit in the second match, resulting in the first sweep of the season. Like the first match, Carballo and Plaster won their match in three.
Results (Order of Finish: 3, 2, 4*, 5, 1)
1) Katelyn Carballo/Samantha Plaster (ASU) def. Erin Martin/Lauren Ohlinger (BSU) 18-21, 21-14, 15-10
2) Emily Anderson/Sarah Waters (ASU) def. Jensen Allen/Danielle Boss (BSU) 21-15, 21-19
3) Ellyson Lundberg/Maddy Salazar (ASU) def. Katie Martin/Ellie McDonald (BSU) 21-11, 22-20
4) Kate Baldwin/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) def. Joey Benson/Alyssa Wissinger (BSU) 21-17, 21-18
5) Cierra Flood/Lauren Weintraub (ASU) def. Olivia Bradley/Kylee Johnson (BSU) 22-20, 23-21
Up Next
The Sand Devils will start a string of six-straight matchups with Pac-12 teams, starting with Stanford and Cal next weekend on the road.