Sun Devil Beach Volleyball made waves in 2024, breaking records and putting together the most successful season in program history.
Team Accomplishments
Led by first-year ASU head coach Kristen Rohr, Arizona State had a stellar season in 2024. In the final season as a member of the Pac-12, the team went 21-10 (5-5 Pac-12) and made it to the NCAA Tournament for the first time, earning a No. 12 seed. The 21 wins tied the ASU record for wins in a season. ASU had raked in 11 ranked wins this season, the previous record was held at three during the 2019 season. Before this season, there were 13 total ranked wins throughout team history.
The Sand Devils made a statement with their start to the season, going 6-0 for the best start in team history. ASU started at the Tampa Invitational, which had three ranked teams, and won all four duals. The momentum continued two weeks later after the Sand Devils earned their highest ranked win in program history against then-ranked No. 2 Stanford, 3-2, at the Pac-12 South Tournament in Tempe. Also at that tournament, ASU beat in-state rival Arizona, who the Sun Devils would beat again at the Pac-12 Championship.
Following the Pac-12 South Tournament, the team was on the road for over a month, picking up four more ranked wins along the way, including a win over cross-town foe Grand Canyon in Phoenix. At the final Pac-12 Championships, which the Sun Devils hosted, ASU upset No. 8 Cal, 3-2, for a second top-10 win this season and third in program history.
In the rankings, Arizona State was No. 12 in the final AVCA Coaches Poll. The Sun Devils were ranked for the entire season, the first time the program has been ranked for more than four weeks. The highest ranking was No. 10 on March 5, which was tied for the highest ranking in team history.
Awards and Honors
After an incredible season, the awards rolled in for the Sun Devils, making this the most decorated season the program has seen. Arizona State saw its first All-Americans as sophomore Daniella Kensinger and freshman Ava Williamson were both AVCA Second Team All-Americans. Additionally, Williamson and sophomore Arden Besecker were named an AVCA Top Flight pair for Flight 2 after they went 15-3 at the twos for the first half of the year.
In her first season at Arizona State, head coach Kristen Rohr was the Pac-12 Coach of the Year for leading the squad to this historic season. She is the first Sand Devil coach to earn this award.
Two other big awards were given to the team. At the NCAA Championships, sophomore Adriana Nieves Papaleo won the NCAA Elite 90 award for the best academic performance among all student-athletes at the championships. She’s the first in team history. In their final season as Sand Devils, senior Taryn Ames and graduate Taryn Ames were named to the Pac-12 All-Tournament Team after going undefeated.
ASU had two Pac-12 Pairs of the Week this season. Kensinger and Anya Pemberton got the first for the Sun Devils, followed by Williamson and Besecker. Prior to this season, Arizona State had only earned one weekly award.
Individual Success
The top three courts were successful and consistent for the Sand Devils all season. The six Sun Devils on those courts stayed there all season. Kensinger was on court one all year, starting with Pemberton before Williamson switched from the twos to the ones. Besecker held down court two, first with Williamson before playing with Pemberton. Ames and Sweeney were the only pair to stay together all season, all at the threes.
The leader in individual wins was Williamson with a 24-7 record, which is the third-best single season record in ASU history. With Besecker on court two, she won nine-straight matches together. Individually, Williamson extended the win streak to 11 while Besecker got it up to 12, the top two longest win streaks in ASU history. Besecker’s season record was the second best at 22-7, tied for the sixth best in team history.
Ames and Sweeney were the consistent pair for Arizona State. They played every dual on court three and earned a 20-10 record, which is tied for the fourth-best record by a pair in a single season at Arizona State and is the ninth best for individual wins. They each earned 61 wins throughout their Sand Devil career, putting them in a tie at No. 3 for most individual career wins.
Kensinger had a strong year for Arizona State, playing on the top court all season and earning a 19-12 record. At the ones, she earned wins over pairs from the following ranked teams: FAU, Stanford, Stetson, Grand Canyon, Washington, Arizona and Cal. Not far behind in wins was Pemberton, who went 17-12 this year, her most productive season in her three years. She ended the year 15th in the ASU record book for career individual wins with 29.
The fours and fives saw a mixture of pairings. The two most consistent on these courts were freshman Ava Haughy and redshirt sophomore Ava Kirunchyk. Haughy switched between the fours and fives for a 14-14 record in her first season. She paired up the most with Kirunchyk on court four and Nieves Papaleo on five. Of Kirunchyk’s 10-14 record, she played all but one dual at the No. 4 spot, teaming up with sophomore Carys Thomas and Haughy. Kirunchyk ended the season with senior Kate Fitzgerald on that court.
Nieves Papaleo had a strong 15-5 record in her second season, all on court five. She went 6-3 with Haughy, including the last few weekends of the season, and also went 6-2 with sophomore Kendall Whitmarsh. Her other three wins came with Thomas. Between courts four and five, Thomas had an 11-5 mark in 2024.
Season
Arizona State will make the switch to the Big 12 in 2025, the conference’s first season with beach volleyball. ASU, Arizona, Utah and TCU are the four members of the conference in beach volleyball.
The Sun Devils graduate four: Ames, Fitzgerald, Sweeney and Ivey Weber. Of the 10 starts at the NCAA Championships, the Sand Devils lose just three. With the addition of incoming freshmen and transfers, Arizona State will reload for 2025.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Kimberlie Haner
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