TEMPE – With a break-out match from freshman outside hitter Grace Martin, No. 7 Sun Devil Volleyball picked up its third top-25 win of the year by beating No. 24 Oregon in four sets (25-13, 16-25, 25-22, 25-17) on Friday night at Desert Financial Arena.
Notable stats
- Arizona State (6-2) handed Oregon (5-1) its first loss of the season. This was ASU’s third top-25 win of the season. Head coach JJ Van Niel improved to 19-11 against ranked teams.
- Freshman outside hitter Grace Martin had the best match of her young career, notching 12 kills on a .312 clip. It was her first time reaching double figures.
- The Sun Devils had 11 blocks in the win, the third time reaching double figures in that category this season. The blocking effort was led by junior middle blocker Antonina Serafinowska, who had a career-high eight.
- Leading the team in kills was senior opposite Noemie Glover with 13, her second match in a row with double-digit kills, fifth of the season. She also had seven digs and six blocks.
- Junior middle blocker Zoey Burgess had a season-high seven kills on a blistering .636 clip. She added three blocks as well.
- A third Sun Devil with double-digit kills was junior outside hitter Una Vajagić with 11. This was her second match in a row with double-digit kills, sixth of the season. She also had six digs and an ace.
- Junior libero Faith Frame had a team-best 10 digs, her fourth-straight match reaching double figures.
- Pacing the offense was freshman Elle Mottola with 35 assists. She chipped in six digs, two blocks an ace.
- Senior setter Isabella Costantini surpassed 100 career aces in this match. She had two in the first set.
Set one: ASU 25, Oregon 13
Arizona State took an early 7-2 lead over Oregon to kick off the first set. While the Ducks took the next two points, the Sun Devils answered back with a kill from Martin to extend their lead, 8-4. After ASU went on a 4-2 run, Oregon took its first timeout of the set before dropping the next two points. The teams traded the next eight points, with Arizona State still leading, 17-10. The Ducks went on to score three, but the Sun Devils were able to secure the first set, 25-13. ASU held Oregon to a .000 clip in the first set.
Set two: Oregon 25, ASU 14
The second set saw Oregon take an early 4-1 lead, but Arizona State responded with a kill from Glover to add a point. Both teams swapped the next five points, with the Ducks leading 7-4. Following some more back-and-forth play, the Sun Devils closed their point deficit to one. The Ducks responded by scoring the next three, extending their lead to 15-11. Martin tacked one on for Arizona State, but a 9-2 run by Oregon brought the score to set point. Even though the Sun Devils were able to score two-consecutive points, the Ducks closed out the set with a 25-16 win.
Set three: ASU 25, Oregon 22
Arizona State started the set strong, taking the first three points. Oregon scored one, but a kill by Burgess extended ASU’s lead, 4-1. Both teams swapped points, but the Sun Devils held onto their lead. A monster block by Serafinowski and Glover tacked on a point for the Sun Devils for a 10-7 advantage. Following a 5-3 run, Arizona State remained hot with a kill from Vajagić, forcing Oregon to take a timeout. The Ducks went on to close the gap by scoring the next four, but the Sun Devils remained on top, 16-14. Points were then traded between the teams, with ASU making it set point. A service error by Oregon allowed Arizona State to take the third set, 25-22.
Set four: ASU 25, Oregon 17
The Sun Devils carried their momentum into the fourth set, taking an early 6-3 lead. Oregon scored the next point, but a kill from Vajagić retained Arizona State’s three-point lead. Following this, the Ducks scored four of the next five to tie up the set, 8-8. Both teams traded the lead back and forth until the Sun Devils broke away to take a two-point lead on the Ducks, 15-13. A 5-2 run by ASU extended the lead before Oregon took its final timeout of the set. After scoring five of the next seven, the Sun Devils went on to win the fourth set, 25-17.
Up next
The Sun Devils will take on the San Diego Toreros on Saturday at 5 p.m. MST to close out the Snyder-Park Classic.
Quotes
Head Coach JJ Van Niel
Opening statement:
“Obviously fired up with how we responded. We knew we had a tough matchup with Oregon. I thought the team really, really responded well, did a much better job with our blocking, and obviously Grace (Martin) came in and that was a huge, huge match for her.
She crushed it. We were able to get the middle more balls. Zoey (Burgess) had another good match. That was definitely part of the plan, so I'm really proud of the kids.”
On getting the first win at home this season:
“Great. Especially in front of a big crowd like that and on a night celebrating (former head coach) Patti (Snyder-Park), who is a legend here. I love her. She was one of the first people to reach out when I got the job. She's really special, so it was really cool.”
On three players having double-digit kills and what that says about the team’s scoring depth:
“We need that. I think the best teams in the country, year in and year out, they're not relying on one person. They've got multiple people. I still think we can get our middles even more involved, but Zoey had a nice night and so when you can balance it out, it makes it hard to defend. When you're just setting one person the ball every time, it's easy to defend for the most part.”
Freshman outside hitter Grace Martin
On having a big night in front of the Desert Financial Arena crowd:
“I honestly loved the crowd. I think that helps a lot, that big of a crowd. I don't think I've ever played in front of that many people. It was just so exciting having all my teammates surrounding me and giving me that confidence. It was a dream come true, honestly.”
On how the big win impacts the team
“It gives us a good amount of confidence, especially our first win at home. Now that we have that under our belt, it’s a great opportunity to keep going even more throughout the whole season.”
Senior opposite Noemie Glover
On her message to the team as a leader after last night's loss:
“We just have to want it. It's easy to go on the court and just be there, but you have to have that added pressure and that added momentum to really push forward. People are going to want to come into our gym and want to beat us. That's their main goal. We’ve solidified ourselves as a top team in our conference and a top team in the country, so we have to act like it and respect that teams are going to give it their best.”
On what it means to be able trust Elle Mottola to get the assist:
“We trust her so much to run our system; she does a great job. She's come in here and she's very intentional with what she's doing. She's bringing a lot of fire; she's making herself uncomfortable out there. It's awesome to see her grow into that position.”
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