PHOENIX – No. 12 Sun Devil Beach Volleyball earned two more ranked wins at the Lopes Invitational on Saturday, beating No. 18 Stetson and No. 16 GCU, both with a 4-1 score.
Arizona State improved to 16-4, the third-best win total in program history, tied with 2017. ASU also now has a 9-4 record against ranked opponents this season. The win over the Lopes was particularly exciting for head coach Kristen Rohr, who previously had coached them for eight seasons. This was the Sun Devils' first win over the Lopes since 2019.
The Sand Devils won on the top three courts and court five in both duals. The top two courts switch partners, with Daniella Kensinger and Ava Williamson on court one and Arden Besecker with Anya Pemberton on court two. Both were 2-0 today, with Besecker and Williamson extending their individual winning streaks to 11 in a row, a new program record. Additionally, Besecker and Williamson lead the team in individual wins with 17 each, which is already the most wins by a Sand Devil since 2022 and is tied for the 15th most in a single season.
Another new pair was at the No. 5 spot with freshman Ava Haughy and sophomore Adriana Nieves Papaleo winning two matches today.
In the ASU record books, senior Taryn Ames and graduate Lexi Sweeney moved up to a tie for sixth place for career individual wins. Each of them now have 55.
Game One: #12 ASU 4, #18 Stetson 1
The Sand Devils started the day off with a win over No. 18 Stetson (13-6). Besecker and Williamson both got their 10th-straight individual wins on courts one and two, respectively. Taryn Ames and Lexi Sweeney gave ASU the lead when they took down the No. 3 duo in straight sets. Haughy and Nieves Papaleo clinched the dual on court five in a dramatic three-set finish.
Results (Order of Finish: 4, 2, 3, 5*, 1)
Game Two: #12 ASU 4, #16 GCU 1
ASU earned its second victory of the day over GCU (7-12). Court one was the clinching win for the Sand Devils as Williamson and Kensinger won in straight sets. Haughy and Nieves Papaleo also collected a point for the maroon and gold in straight-set fashion. Pairs two and three went to three sets where they both came out on top. Besecker and Williamson extended their individual winning streak to 11-straight matches after today.
Results (Order of Finish: 4, 2, 5, 1*, 3)
Up Next
Arizona State will leave the state again for the Pac-12 North Tournament in Seattle, April 5-6.
Quotes
Head Coach Kristen Rohr
On what it was like coming back to GCU and seeing success:
"I knew it was going to be a little weird coming back. I absolutely loved my time at GCU. This is a place that will always hold a special place in my heart. To come back and see the athletes was nice and I love my friends here. I also am proud of our team for playing hard and getting two great wins. I thought we looked really good out there, especially with a few new pairings. It's really exciting to see."
Freshman Ava Williamson:
On what is was like playing with a different teammate today:
"It was really fun. Me and Dani have a lot of chemistry on the court and we've been working really hard in practice. So I think that just showed today and the way that we played was super consistent. I was really happy with it."
Arizona State improved to 16-4, the third-best win total in program history, tied with 2017. ASU also now has a 9-4 record against ranked opponents this season. The win over the Lopes was particularly exciting for head coach Kristen Rohr, who previously had coached them for eight seasons. This was the Sun Devils' first win over the Lopes since 2019.
The Sand Devils won on the top three courts and court five in both duals. The top two courts switch partners, with Daniella Kensinger and Ava Williamson on court one and Arden Besecker with Anya Pemberton on court two. Both were 2-0 today, with Besecker and Williamson extending their individual winning streaks to 11 in a row, a new program record. Additionally, Besecker and Williamson lead the team in individual wins with 17 each, which is already the most wins by a Sand Devil since 2022 and is tied for the 15th most in a single season.
Another new pair was at the No. 5 spot with freshman Ava Haughy and sophomore Adriana Nieves Papaleo winning two matches today.
In the ASU record books, senior Taryn Ames and graduate Lexi Sweeney moved up to a tie for sixth place for career individual wins. Each of them now have 55.
Game One: #12 ASU 4, #18 Stetson 1
The Sand Devils started the day off with a win over No. 18 Stetson (13-6). Besecker and Williamson both got their 10th-straight individual wins on courts one and two, respectively. Taryn Ames and Lexi Sweeney gave ASU the lead when they took down the No. 3 duo in straight sets. Haughy and Nieves Papaleo clinched the dual on court five in a dramatic three-set finish.
Results (Order of Finish: 4, 2, 3, 5*, 1)
- Daniella Kensinger/Ava Williamson (ASU) def. Henson/Clement (Stetson) 21-17, 21-9
- Arden Besecker/Anya Pemberton (ASU) def. Gauthier/Ferraris (Stetson) 21-17, 18-21, 15-12
- Taryn Ames/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) def. Urzua/Shields (Stetson) 21-19, 21-13
- Della/Hurnikova (Stetson) def. Ava Kirunchyk/Carys Thomas (ASU) 21-19, 24-22
- Ava Haughy/Nieves Papaleo (ASU) def. Sirois/Drozd (Stetson) 21-14, 24-26, 15-11
Game Two: #12 ASU 4, #16 GCU 1
ASU earned its second victory of the day over GCU (7-12). Court one was the clinching win for the Sand Devils as Williamson and Kensinger won in straight sets. Haughy and Nieves Papaleo also collected a point for the maroon and gold in straight-set fashion. Pairs two and three went to three sets where they both came out on top. Besecker and Williamson extended their individual winning streak to 11-straight matches after today.
Results (Order of Finish: 4, 2, 5, 1*, 3)
- Daniella Kensinger/Ava Williamson (ASU) def. Keefe/Dickson (GCU) 21-11, 21-16
- Arden Besecker/Anya Pemberton (ASU) def. Rowan/Hladyniuk (GCU) 21-15, 20-22, 15-11
- Taryn Ames/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) def. Garrow/Serrano Ferro (GCU) 21-16, 18-21, 15-13
- Drake/Harris (GCU) def. Ava Kirunchyk/Carys Thomas (ASU) 21-16, 21-18
- Ava Haughy/Nieves Papaleo (ASU) def. Checani/Holmer (GCU) 21-12, 21-14
Up Next
Arizona State will leave the state again for the Pac-12 North Tournament in Seattle, April 5-6.
Quotes
Head Coach Kristen Rohr
On what it was like coming back to GCU and seeing success:
"I knew it was going to be a little weird coming back. I absolutely loved my time at GCU. This is a place that will always hold a special place in my heart. To come back and see the athletes was nice and I love my friends here. I also am proud of our team for playing hard and getting two great wins. I thought we looked really good out there, especially with a few new pairings. It's really exciting to see."
Freshman Ava Williamson:
On what is was like playing with a different teammate today:
"It was really fun. Me and Dani have a lot of chemistry on the court and we've been working really hard in practice. So I think that just showed today and the way that we played was super consistent. I was really happy with it."