Sand Devils Open Pac-12s With Setback

LOS ANGELES – Despite impressive first-set wins from the first and second pairs, No. 6 seed Sun Devil Beach Volleyball could not finish and fell 3-0 against No. 3 seed Arizona on Thursday afternoon to start the 2021 Pac-12 Beach Volleyball Championship at Mapes Beach.
 
Arizona State (9-11) played in-state rival Arizona (22-4) for the third time this season. The Sun Devils will be in the contenders bracket tomorrow, playing either Washington or Oregon at 9:45 a.m. MST. ASU's opponent will be determined later today at 4:45 p.m. MST. All duals at the tournament are live on the Pac-12 Network.
 
The Sand Devils battled in this dual, starting with Emily Anderson and Kate Fitzgerald winning their first set 30-28, the highest score the team has seen this season. Katelyn Carballo and Lexi Sweeney also had an impressive first set, facing set point for their opponents on the top court and putting together seven in a row to win the set 22-20. However, both pairs could not keep the momentum and ended up falling in three sets.
 
#3 Arizona 3, #6 Arizona State 0
Results (Order of Finish: 4, 2, 1*)
1) Parkhurst/Rennie (ARIZ) def. Katelyn Carballo/Lexi Sweeney (ASU) 20-22, 21-13, 15-11
2) Blacker/Burling (ARIZ) def. Emily Anderson/Kate Fitzgerald (ASU) 28-30, 21-15, 15-7
3) Anselmo/Lowry (ARIZ) vs. Cierra Flood/Sarah Waters (ASU) 11-9 DNF
4) Noble/Parker (ARIZ) def. Lila Bordis/Samantha Plaster (ASU) 21-9, 22-20
5) Hallaran/Shannon (ARIZ) vs. Taryn Ames/Lauren Weintraub (ASU) 21-16, 8-10 DNF