Maroon Beats Gold In Sand Devil Facility Debut
TEMPE, Ariz. – Sun Devil Beach Volleyball's annual Maroon and Gold Scrimmage made its long-awaited return Monday night to kick off the 2022 Sun Devil Beach Volleyball season and debut the brand new facility, with Maroon taking the 4-1 win over Gold.
"It was nice to be able to get out here under the lights, have fans, especially at the brand new courts and I just loved seeing the way the girls battled all night," Arizona State Head Coach Brad Keenan said. "I think the first three matches all went to three games and a couple other ones went to overtime games. There were super long rallies and that's the way we want to play this year. We want to extend rallies and make teams battle, especially in our new deep sand."
Fans were welcomed to experience the atmosphere at the newly built Sun Devil Beach Volleyball Facility for the first time. Prior to the matches began, there was a ceremonial "First Serve" by key members of the Sand Devil family: Kemp Ellis and former student-athletes Katelyn Carballo and Whitney Follette. The scrimmage marks the start of what will prove to be an illustrious new chapter in the program's history.
Ceremonial First Serve from these legends ?? pic.twitter.com/w5BkAimHBd
— Sun Devil Beach VB (@SunDevilBeachVB) February 22, 2022
The Sand Devils rotated across all three courts, playing in pairs against their teammates. Maroon defeated Gold 4-1 after winning two in the first wave and the two second wave matches. The sophomore pair of Taryn Ames and Kate Fitzgerald played two matches, winning their first in three sets and the second in straight sets.
Wave One:
Shane Burleson/Jensen Kaelin (Maroon) def. Malina Baker/Lauren Weintraub (Gold) 20-22, 21-15, 15-10
Taryn Ames/Kate Fitzgerald (Maroon) def. Cambria Hall/Maddy Salazar (Gold) 24-22, 19-21, 15-12
Ivey Weber/Kaitlyn Winkelman (Gold) def. Maria Kowal/Kylie Wickley (Maroon) 21-14, 15-21, 15-9
Wave Two:
Taryn Ames/Kate Fitzgerald (Maroon) def. Lila Bordis/Sarah Waters (Gold) 21-11, 21-13
Cierra Flood/Lexi Sweeney (Maroon) def. Rylie Kael/Anya Pemberton (Gold) 21-15, 21-18