(Photo: Courtney Pedroza/WCSN)
At its highest ranking in program history, the No. 5 Arizona State Sun Devils, have their first road test of conference play as they travel up to Seattle, Washington, to take on the No. 6 Washington Huskies.
The Sun Devils come in at 15-0 and have started Pac-12 play at 4-0 for the first time since joining the conference. The Huskies are 13-1 with their only loss coming against No. 1 USC.
Washington has a few players to watch on their team, the most notable being Courtney Schwan. The sophomore outside hitter is averaging just over 3.5 kills per set. She has been far and away the best offensive player for the Huskies.
In addition to Schwan, Lianna Sybeldon is coming off a career night against No. 14 Arizona. The senior middle blocker hit over .700 with 19 kills on 26 swings and no errors. On the season, she averages 2.48 kills per set and is hitting close to .500 on the year.
ASU will have to play well defensively against this team. In the game Washington had against USC, the Trojans had 11 blocks and 81 digs, and in long sets like the 33-31 fourth, defensive stands will be crucial.
ASU has played incredibly well on defense all season averaging just over three blocks per set along with nearly 15 digs per set. Senior middle blocker Whitney Follette and junior outside hitter BreElle Bailey are averaging a combined 2.59 blocks per set, while sophomore libero Halle Harker leads the team with 3.7 digs per set.
The Sun Devils have maintained a high level of play even when freshman setter Kylie Pickrell went down with an injury and is continuing to recover. Junior outside hitter Cassidy Pickrell thinks the Sun Devils’ depth is huge.
“I really, truly think that you can put anyone on this team out on the court and we would succeed,” Pickrell said. “We switched from a 6-2 to a 5-1, and everyone stepped up to play something that our team hadn’t practiced as much as we had the 6-2. Being able to do that at the beginning of Pac-12 play shows just how much depth we really have”
ASU will need big performances as they take on their fifth top 15 opponent of the year. The match will be played Friday night at 7 p.m in Seattle. The game will be live streamed by Washington.
