TEMPE – In the Big 12 home opener, No. 15 Sun Devil Volleyball notched a season-high 14 blocks to emerge victorious against Utah in four sets (17-25, 25-13, 25-19, 25-15) on Wednesday night at Mullett Arena.
Notable Stats
Set One: Utah 25, ASU 17
The Sun Devils trailed 7-3 early in the first set, with the Utes going on three and four point scoring runs. Arizona State took its first timeout after going down 12-7. ASU was able to cut the Utah lead to 15-13, with one of the points being a service ace from Shroll. Utah then took firm control of the set, going on an 8-2 run and taking the first set 25-17.
Set Two: ASU 25, Utah 13
The second set featured a stronger start from ASU, as the Sun Devils got off to a 3-0 lead. Utah responded by tying the set at four, then Arizona State scored five-straight points. Jeter led the charge during that run with two kills and two blocks. The Sun Devils got out to a 21-11 lead before the Utes called a timeout, with Neal notching three kills in that span. ASU would capture the second set 25-13, tying the match.
Set Three: ASU 25, Utah 19
Like the second set, the Sun Devils took control early and got out to a 6-2 advantage. With Arizona State ahead 9-6, a 5-0 run for the Sun Devils commenced. Kjolhede recorded three kills during the run, and ended up with six total kills in the set. The Utes fought back however, going on a 7-1 run before the Sun Devils called a timeout. ASU regained its groove after the timeout, and the Sun Devils grabbed the 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-19 set victory.
Set Four: ASU 25, Utah 15
Both teams went back and forth to start the pivotal fourth set, as ASU and Utah split the first eight points. Arizona State then took the momentum with a 6-2 scoring run. Cyr and Kjolhede each recorded two kills during the run. With the Sun Devils ahead 14-8, the Utes countered with a 5-2 run to pull within three points. Ahead 18-15, Arizona State would finish strong, going on a 7-0 run to win the match.
Up Next
The Sun Devils will be back in action against No. 20 BYU on Friday at Desert Financial Arena at 5 p.m. MST. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Quotes
Arizona State Head Coach JJ Van Niel
Opening statement:
"It was great to be home, back in Mullett, the first time we played here this year, aside from the scrimmage. I'm really, really proud of the team for battling back, they came out playing really well. They weren't making errors, they played a very clean game, they put a ton of pressure on us. I think a team can react in one or two ways and I thought our team said all right, cool down 1-0, and let's make a couple of changes, clean up some things and they came out and executed pretty flawlessly the rest of the match. It was really fun to see and good to see them battle."
On Utah's frustration after long rallies:
"This whole season, we've had to work a lot harder in transition than maybe last year we did. And when you have someone like Shroll back there putting up two or three digs in a rally, that puts a lot of pressure on the opponent. When you keep sending the ball back over, they have to earn it. And then as an attacker you get frustrated because you're not getting kills. It happened to our kids, in the first set, they (Utah) were digging every swing we took. I think we were hitting in the negative in the first set. When you can continue to put pressure on them and just keep sending the ball over, eventually, players crack. So, I thought Shroll did an awesome job. We had four people in double digits in four sets, that's pretty amazing actually. And Geli (Cyr), she's a joy. She's like having another libero out there, so she gets a bunch of digs and again, defense is really important for our team."
On the chemistry from the middle blockers leading up to the match:
"They're both veterans and they're both really, really hard workers. They come in every time and do their job over and over and over and that's what you need. It's great because they set the example for everyone else to understand that we come in and work. We're a blue blue collar team and those guys come in and they work really hard. Middle is one of those positions that's the unsung hero; they don't typically get the credit. The crazy thing for them is a lot of times when we're getting kills from our left sides or our right sides, it's because the middles were up. You have to constantly reinforce to them that they did their job. If you get up on time, that creates the openings and we had a bunch of really nice openings. Bailey (Miller) was pretty open over there on the right and our outside and we were in the system. When our middles were up, they were wide open."
Graduate Libero Mary Shroll
On the comeback:
"So far this year, that's been a thing for us. We can bounce back. We can grind back. Even if we're down in the first set, teams should never think that we're gonna roll over. We're always gonna fight. The first set didn't really go our way. There were a couple of things we changed and I think we were all fully confident that we were gonna come back and just kind of get really gritty with it."
On back and forth defensive battle:
"They were really gritty in that first set. It's frustrating too when you play teams that just keep getting it up and sending it over and they were doing a great job. It's like, 'ok, we have to be gritty too.' We have to just play scrappy, scrappy defense and in the first set, we kind of forgot about that. We told each other to just go into the next set and be really gritty."
On key momentum shift:
"We had a lot of really long rallies. Again, they were scrapping, we were scrapping. So every time that you win those, it's just a huge, huge momentum builder. Also, when Rob (Roberta Rabelo) came in the front row and she blocked their right side, that was huge because she just executed it and it was hype. Robbie gets really hyped so it gets everybody really excited."
Graduate Middle Blocker Claire Jeter
On making an impact on offense:
"I think I've always been that offensive middle and it's really awesome for me to be a defensive middle. I think that's something I've been practicing a lot recently. When JJ came in, that was a big goal of his. So to be able to kind of do both is awesome. I think that's also a testament to our setters and our passers to be able to put up those numbers for me and Savannah."
On Geli Cyr's net presence:
"I think our speed is great because a lot of the time they might be focusing on Geli, but they'll also be focusing on the middle. It's hard to focus on both. So it's either she's helping me or I'm helping her because our routes are so close together. I think especially after the Baylor game, she helped me a lot this game with how many open seams I had. She's a go-to hitter obviously. So her ability to put down balls helps me a lot whenever I'm getting to swing."
On the evolution of the offense from last year:
"I think that last year we focused and relied on Marta (Levinska) a lot obviously and we had other key pieces, but now everyone is very important to our role in this game. And I think Geli being able to hit out of the back row has been a huge help. There's no one on her. She's gonna put the ball down every time. Savannah on her slide, there are rarely people that can hit a slide that well. I think she has a lot of different shots and she's very smart. Her IQ is really high. I think that comes with the fifth year. Then the connection between her and Argentina, it's just really coming together."
Notable Stats
- Arizona State (13-2, 2-1 Big 12) beat former Pac-12 foe Utah (12-2, 2-1 Big 12) for the first Big 12 win at home, bouncing back after dropping the first set to win the next three. This snapped an eight-match winning streak for the Utes.
- Under head coach JJ Van Niel, ASU has not lost two matches in a row. This was his 50th match as a head coach, improving to 41-9 overall.
- ASU had 14 blocks, which is a new season high.
- Graduate middle blocker Claire Jeter had a stand-out showing for the Sun Devils. She led the charge at the net with nine blocks, matching her career high that she last reached in 2022. She also had 10 kills, her fourth time this season in double figures. Additionally, she collected five digs and two aces.
- Both middle blockers came to play tonight as graduate Savannah Kjolhede had a team-high 12 kills on a .800 clip, which is a career-high hitting percentage for her. This was her second time this season reaching double figures in kills. She added five blocks as well.
- Graduate libero Mary Shroll notched a game-high 23 digs for her fourth match this season with 20-plus digs, 12th in her career. It was the 17th-straight match with double-digit digs for her. She also had two aces.
- As the primary setter, graduate Argentina Ung notched her fourth double-double of the year, 23rd of her career, with 33 assists and 10 digs.
- Another double-double came from senior outside hitter Geli Cyr with a season-high 17 digs and 10 kills. This was her fifth-straight match in double figures in kills.
- Redshirt-freshman Brynn Covell in double-digit digs for the third time, matching her career high with 12.
- Sophomore Jillian Neal made a difference off the net in the match. She tied her career high in digs with eight and chipped in four kills. She also had one ace.
Set One: Utah 25, ASU 17
The Sun Devils trailed 7-3 early in the first set, with the Utes going on three and four point scoring runs. Arizona State took its first timeout after going down 12-7. ASU was able to cut the Utah lead to 15-13, with one of the points being a service ace from Shroll. Utah then took firm control of the set, going on an 8-2 run and taking the first set 25-17.
Set Two: ASU 25, Utah 13
The second set featured a stronger start from ASU, as the Sun Devils got off to a 3-0 lead. Utah responded by tying the set at four, then Arizona State scored five-straight points. Jeter led the charge during that run with two kills and two blocks. The Sun Devils got out to a 21-11 lead before the Utes called a timeout, with Neal notching three kills in that span. ASU would capture the second set 25-13, tying the match.
S2 | Defense is EVERYWHERE ?? And Jillian Neal with the tool for the point ??
— Sun Devil Volleyball (@SunDevilVB) October 3, 2024
???: ESPN+#ForksUp pic.twitter.com/F2UHTdu1z9
Set Three: ASU 25, Utah 19
Like the second set, the Sun Devils took control early and got out to a 6-2 advantage. With Arizona State ahead 9-6, a 5-0 run for the Sun Devils commenced. Kjolhede recorded three kills during the run, and ended up with six total kills in the set. The Utes fought back however, going on a 7-1 run before the Sun Devils called a timeout. ASU regained its groove after the timeout, and the Sun Devils grabbed the 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-19 set victory.
Set Four: ASU 25, Utah 15
Both teams went back and forth to start the pivotal fourth set, as ASU and Utah split the first eight points. Arizona State then took the momentum with a 6-2 scoring run. Cyr and Kjolhede each recorded two kills during the run. With the Sun Devils ahead 14-8, the Utes countered with a 5-2 run to pull within three points. Ahead 18-15, Arizona State would finish strong, going on a 7-0 run to win the match.
S4 | What can't Claire Jeter do?? ??
— Sun Devil Volleyball (@SunDevilVB) October 3, 2024
???: ESPN+#ForksUp pic.twitter.com/EdMNjZzuTX
Up Next
The Sun Devils will be back in action against No. 20 BYU on Friday at Desert Financial Arena at 5 p.m. MST. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Quotes
Arizona State Head Coach JJ Van Niel
Opening statement:
"It was great to be home, back in Mullett, the first time we played here this year, aside from the scrimmage. I'm really, really proud of the team for battling back, they came out playing really well. They weren't making errors, they played a very clean game, they put a ton of pressure on us. I think a team can react in one or two ways and I thought our team said all right, cool down 1-0, and let's make a couple of changes, clean up some things and they came out and executed pretty flawlessly the rest of the match. It was really fun to see and good to see them battle."
On Utah's frustration after long rallies:
"This whole season, we've had to work a lot harder in transition than maybe last year we did. And when you have someone like Shroll back there putting up two or three digs in a rally, that puts a lot of pressure on the opponent. When you keep sending the ball back over, they have to earn it. And then as an attacker you get frustrated because you're not getting kills. It happened to our kids, in the first set, they (Utah) were digging every swing we took. I think we were hitting in the negative in the first set. When you can continue to put pressure on them and just keep sending the ball over, eventually, players crack. So, I thought Shroll did an awesome job. We had four people in double digits in four sets, that's pretty amazing actually. And Geli (Cyr), she's a joy. She's like having another libero out there, so she gets a bunch of digs and again, defense is really important for our team."
On the chemistry from the middle blockers leading up to the match:
"They're both veterans and they're both really, really hard workers. They come in every time and do their job over and over and over and that's what you need. It's great because they set the example for everyone else to understand that we come in and work. We're a blue blue collar team and those guys come in and they work really hard. Middle is one of those positions that's the unsung hero; they don't typically get the credit. The crazy thing for them is a lot of times when we're getting kills from our left sides or our right sides, it's because the middles were up. You have to constantly reinforce to them that they did their job. If you get up on time, that creates the openings and we had a bunch of really nice openings. Bailey (Miller) was pretty open over there on the right and our outside and we were in the system. When our middles were up, they were wide open."
Graduate Libero Mary Shroll
On the comeback:
"So far this year, that's been a thing for us. We can bounce back. We can grind back. Even if we're down in the first set, teams should never think that we're gonna roll over. We're always gonna fight. The first set didn't really go our way. There were a couple of things we changed and I think we were all fully confident that we were gonna come back and just kind of get really gritty with it."
On back and forth defensive battle:
"They were really gritty in that first set. It's frustrating too when you play teams that just keep getting it up and sending it over and they were doing a great job. It's like, 'ok, we have to be gritty too.' We have to just play scrappy, scrappy defense and in the first set, we kind of forgot about that. We told each other to just go into the next set and be really gritty."
On key momentum shift:
"We had a lot of really long rallies. Again, they were scrapping, we were scrapping. So every time that you win those, it's just a huge, huge momentum builder. Also, when Rob (Roberta Rabelo) came in the front row and she blocked their right side, that was huge because she just executed it and it was hype. Robbie gets really hyped so it gets everybody really excited."
Graduate Middle Blocker Claire Jeter
On making an impact on offense:
"I think I've always been that offensive middle and it's really awesome for me to be a defensive middle. I think that's something I've been practicing a lot recently. When JJ came in, that was a big goal of his. So to be able to kind of do both is awesome. I think that's also a testament to our setters and our passers to be able to put up those numbers for me and Savannah."
On Geli Cyr's net presence:
"I think our speed is great because a lot of the time they might be focusing on Geli, but they'll also be focusing on the middle. It's hard to focus on both. So it's either she's helping me or I'm helping her because our routes are so close together. I think especially after the Baylor game, she helped me a lot this game with how many open seams I had. She's a go-to hitter obviously. So her ability to put down balls helps me a lot whenever I'm getting to swing."
On the evolution of the offense from last year:
"I think that last year we focused and relied on Marta (Levinska) a lot obviously and we had other key pieces, but now everyone is very important to our role in this game. And I think Geli being able to hit out of the back row has been a huge help. There's no one on her. She's gonna put the ball down every time. Savannah on her slide, there are rarely people that can hit a slide that well. I think she has a lot of different shots and she's very smart. Her IQ is really high. I think that comes with the fifth year. Then the connection between her and Argentina, it's just really coming together."