(Photo: Trey Lanthier/WCSN)
Arizona State had the luxury of four weekends of matches to settle in before they took on Colorado State in a top-20 matchup a season ago, where the Sun Devils fell to the Rams in five sets.
That is not the case this season.
No. 15 ASU hits the road to Fort Collins, Colo. for its second set of matches of the season. The weekend kicks off with the Sun Devils’ strongest test of the preseason in the form of No. 9 Colorado State.
“They’re a program that’s historically been remarkably successful,” ASU head coach Jason Watson said.
The Rams spent 12 weeks in the AVCA top-10 in 2016, and they have the makings of yet another strong campaign. They are led by Mountain West Preseason Player of the Year Adrianna Culbert. The senior setter/hitter is coming off another strong weekend where she recorded 23 kills to just four errors and averaged 5.44 assists per set.
With a matchup of two top-15 teams on Friday, Watson is looking forward to observing what his team can do.
“All in all, it’s going to be a fun matchup for us early in the season where we get to go into an environment that’s going to be lots of people against a really, really good team,” Watson said. “I’m excited to just throw it up and see where we’re at.”
ASU performed well in the Falcon Classic in Colorado Springs, Colo. sweeping the weekend. It wasn’t without adversity though, as the Sun Devils found themselves in a five-set match against New Mexico State. Behind senior middle blocker Whitney Follette’s 12 kills and nine blocks, ASU remained perfect on the season.
“I felt like we gave the ball to our middles more than we have in the past,” Watson said.
ASU also saw strong production from the pin-hitters, and in particular, junior outside hitter Cassidy Pickrell, who made her debut for the Sun Devils after transferring from UC Irvine.
Pickrell totaled 33 kills on 76 swings, showcasing just a microcosm of help she could provide in relieving pressure from senior outside hitter Macey Gardner, who climbed to No. 3 on ASU’s career kills list this weekend.
“She’s (Pickrell) playing her way into a pretty big role,” Watson said. “She was consistent. I feel she’s going to get better.”
Another notable change for ASU’s side was the use of a 6-2 system, interchanging senior setter Bianca Arellano and freshman setter Kylie Pickrell with junior opposites Kizzy Ricedorff and BreElle Bailey.
The two setters combined to average 4.96 assists per set, while Ricedorff and Bailey posted 41 kills on a .301 hitting percentage.
“You look at how many swings that Macey has taken and the toll it takes,” Watson said of using a 6-2. “And you have to wonder when you get to December and you’re in the NCAA Tournament, that cumulative effect of swings has got to do something, so we’re a lot more offensively balanced being in this 6-2.”
Kylie Pickrell, who learned that she would be alternating with Arellano in the back row handled her first taste of collegiate ball well, and she is eager to build on a weekend of play that earned her All-Tournament setter honors.
“I’m really excited to go and play because they (Colorado State) were talking about how they’re going to pack the gym for that game,” she said. “And they’re going to have a couple thousand fans out there, and I’ve never been in that sort of an environment before.”
ASU will play the Rams on Friday at 6 p.m., which will be streamed live via the Mountain West Network. The Sun Devils will play a doubleheader the following day, Sept. 5, starting with Western Michigan at 10 a.m. and then finish the weekend against Northern Colorado at 6 p.m.
Naturally, Watson was happy with his team starting off the season with three wins, but his entire focus is on this weekend, and most notably, that matchup with Colorado State.
“That’s then, and this weekend is now,” Watson said. “Life changes a little bit.”
You can reach Zac Pacleb on Twitter @ZacPacleb or via email at zacpacleb@gmail.com
