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Season Highs Push Sun Devils To Victory

by thesundevils.com
Sep 17, 2022

LUBBOCK, Texas – In a match that saw numerous season highs, Sun Devil Volleyball got back on track by beating Oral Roberts in four sets (25-20, 25-8, 23-25, 25-15) on Saturday to end the Red Raider Classic.

Notable Stats

  • Arizona State (6-6) finished non-conference play on a high note by beating Oral Roberts (3-9). Aside from coming up short in the third set, ASU had control of the whole match, leading ORU in almost every category. 
  • Senior libero Annika Larson started for the first time this season and made an impression. She notched 25 digs, her season high by a large margin (previous high was three) and her 11th match in her career with 20-plus digs. Her dig number is also the highest total by any Sun Devil this season.
  • The pin hitter duo of Iman Isanovic and Marta Levinska both notched double-digit kills with 17 kills each. Isanovic had her third double-double in a row with 11 digs to her name.
  • Isanovic was named to the Red Raider Classic All-Tournament Team. She had a double-double in every match this weekend.
  • The team hit .348 in the win, paced by junior setter Ella Snyder. She tallied 41 assists and 11 digs (both season highs) for her first double-double of the year.
  • Both middle blockers had strong showings. Junior Claire Jeter had three blocks and nine kills on a .533 clip, a season high percentage. Fellow junior Claudia Stahlke, who started for the first time this season, also had three blocks, a season-high for her.
  • Junior outside hitter Roberta Rabelo had her best showing of the season. She had nine kills, hitting .304, as well as 10 digs and two blocks. All of those numbers are season highs with the dig total being a career high. She also had the match-winning ace.
  • Sophomore defensive specialist Meadow Cooper made her first career start in today's match. 

Set One: ASU 25, ORU 20
The first set started out close with both teams battling until a three-point run put ASU up 11-7, forcing Oral Roberts to call a timeout. After that, ASU was able to open up the gap as they slowly started to pull away with the rest of the set. Snyder and Jeter ended the set with a block, securing the first set victory. While no player had more than three kills in the first set, Stahlke led the way defensively with three blocks. ASU as a team had six total blocks throughout the set.  

Set Two: ASU 25, ORU 8
The second set was a quick one. ASU opened the set with a three-point scoring run that ended with a kill by Oral Roberts. The Sun Devils then went on a 4-0 run with Cooper serving to make it 8-2. Isanovic had three-straight kills during that run. A few points later, the Sun Devils went on a 9-0 scoring run to put themselves up 20-4. After two-straight kills by Levinska, ASU closed out the set with a block by Jeter and Rabelo. 

Set Three: ASU 23, ORU 25
Oral Roberts started the third set with a 4-0 scoring run, but ASU was able to sideout on a kill by Isanovic. The two teams continued to trade points until the Sun Devils managed to pull within one after a three point streak, making the deficit 8-7. A service ace by Jeter tied the set up at 12 apiece. After going back-and-forth, the Sun Devils finally took the lead at the 20-19 mark off of an attack error by Oral Roberts. It was a tight battle the rest of the way with the Golden Eagles closing out the set. 

Set Four: ASU 25, ORU 15
ASU jumped out to a quick 9-2 lead it would not relinquish thanks to a 7-0 run to start the set. The Sun Devils controlled the entire set, hitting .417 as a team. A kill by Isanovic ignited a 7-2 run by ASU to extend their lead to 18-8. After ending on a 5-0 scoring streak that allowed ORU to close the gap, Rabelo closed out the set with a service ace.

Up Next
Arizona State begins Pac-12 play next week, starting with a Territorial Cup matchup against Arizona in Tucson on Wednesday before heading to take on Colorado on Sunday in Boulder.

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