(Photo: Zac Pacleb/WCSN)
After dropping the seventh game out of their last nine against the No. 3 Washington Huskies, the No. 20 Arizona State Sun Devils will look to put their season back on track as the Washington State Cougars come into Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe to face ASU at 2 p.m.
The Pac-12 is a tough place to play, and both ASU and Washington State are examples of that struggle. The Sun Devils own a 6-7 conference record after a 4-0 start in conference play. On the other side, the Cougars are suffering their fair share of losses in the conference with a conference record of 3-10.
The Sun Devils season has been a bit of a jumble rotation-wise. Searching to find some kind of continuity, the Sun Devils have tried a few different rotations. Expect to see ASU come out in its normal 6-2 offense lead by setters senior Bianca Arellano and freshman Kylie Pickrell.
The one bright spot for the Sun Devils all season has been their defense. ASU is ranked 15th in the country in blocks per set, with 2.89 per set. Leading the way defensively for the Sun Devils is senior middle blocker Whitney Follette, who averages 1.27 blocks per set.
The Sun Devils also have a strong back row defense behind the block. The leading passer on the team is sophomore Halle Harker who is having herself a good season with 298 digs, while averaging 3.59 digs per set.
Last time the Sun Devils met with the Cougars, the match did not go ASU’s way. This match was the start of ASU’s skid, as it was the first match after senior outside hitter Macey Gardner suffered her season-ending injury. The Sun Devils will look to redeem themselves with a win today over the Cougars.
The Sun Devils will especially have to look out for junior outside hitter Kyra Holt as she is leading the Cougars with 324 kills and is averaging 4.00 kills per set.
Junior opposite BreElle Bailey has been a bright spot on the season for the Sun Devils. She has come alive in the last seven matches. Through those matches, Bailey has accumulated double-digit kills in three of them. She even notched her career-high of 16 against the Colorado Buffaloes.
“She (Bailey) is the lone bright spot of this whole thing,” ASU head coach Jason Watson said. “And (she) has been really for the last couple of weeks.”
The Sun Devils will look to Bailey to lead the team in a match that has become very important for ASU’s season.
If you have any questions or comments, you can contact Jacob Franklin via twitter @Jacob_Franklin4 or via email at jacobfranklin093@gmail.com
