(Tempe, AZ) Hosting the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1995, Sun Devil Volleyball is in the 64-team bracket for the second year in a row, receiving a No. 3 seed and hosting the first two rounds on December 6-7 in Desert Financial Arena.
Arizona State (29-2, 17-1 Big 12) will face New Hampshire in the first round on December 6 at 6:30 p.m. MST. The other matchup in ASU’s bracket is No. 6 seed Texas A&M against Colorado State at 4:30 p.m. MST on Friday as well. The winners of both matches will play each other in the second round on December 7. All matches will be live on ESPN+ and more information can be found on the tournament website. Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Monday (December 2) at noon MST.
Under second-year head coach JJ Van Niel, the Sun Devils are back in the NCAA Tournament for the second-consecutive season, 21st time overall in program history. Last season, Arizona State advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinals after winning two matches in the tournament for the first time in program history.
Team Information
The 2024 Big 12 Champions, Arizona State finished the regular season with a 29-2 record, going 17-1 in Big 12 play. This is the first conference title for the program in team history for Arizona State and the first Big 12 title across all sports for ASU. In volleyball, Arizona State is one of four teams in the conference to have won a Big 12 title (also Baylor, Kansas, Kansas State).
The team is on a 17-match winning streak heading into the tournament. The 29 wins are the most this century and two wins away from the most all-time (31 in 1982). Additionally, ASU has 19 sweeps this year, one away from the program record. The Sun Devils went undefeated at home in the regular season for the first time since becoming an NCAA sport. The only other time ASU was undefeated was in the first year of the program in 1973 when they went undefeated all season.
The Sun Devils built up an impressive resume over the season. In addition to their monumental win total, they went 5-2 against ranked opponents, including a top-10 win over then-No. 8 Kansas. Arizona State never lost a match to an unranked team this season. Not only has ASU won, but it has won with efficiency, hitting .277 on the year, top 20 in the nation for hitting percentage. There have been five individual efforts ranked in the top 10 in the ASU record book for hitting percentages (one from Savannah Kjolhede, three from Claire Jeter and one from Bailey Miller). The Sun Devils have also held opponents to low clips, ranking in the top 20 all season for opponent hitting percentages (currently at .157).
ASU has had contributions from every position this season, creating a team where anyone could be the stand-out player of a match on any given day. There are seven Sun Devils with more than 100 kills and three with more than 200, led by senior outside hitter Geli Cyr’s 353. That number is a new season high for her, notching double-digit kills in all but eight matches. She also has had 10 double-doubles and was the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week on October 1. For Cyr’s efforts, she earned a spot on the AVCA National Player of the Year Watchlist.
On defense, graduate libero Mary Shroll has led the charge all year, ranking in the top two all throughout the season in digs and digs per set in the Big 12. She is currently at 495 digs and has had double-digit digs in all but two matches all season. She won Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week three times and along with Cyr was named to the AVCA National Player of the Year Watchlist.
Pacing the offense all season has been graduate setter Argentina Ung, who was a grad transfer for Arizona State. In her lone season in Tempe, she has made an impact, helping ASU hit .277 on the year, top 20 in the nation for hitting percentage. Ung has dished out over 1,000 assists and surpassed 3,000 career assists this season. A force on defense as well, she has 13 double-doubles and is second on the team in digs.
The two middle blockers all season have been graduates Claire Jeter and Savannah Kjolhede. Jeter in her fourth season in Tempe earned 246 kills (third on the team) and 93 blocks. She was the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week on November 12 and has been ranked in the top 10 in the nation all season for her hitting percentage, currently at .428. Kjolhede, a graduate transfer, notched a team-best 108 blocks as well as 196 kills on the year. Her hitting percentage of .366 is second on the team.
Joining Cyr as the other outside hitter this season has been graduate Shania Cromartie. Second on the team in kills with 269, Cromartie has had 12 matches with double-digit kills. She also racked up the digs, having seven matches with digs in double figures.
Key contributions have come from all across the roster. The team leader in aces is sophomore Jillian Nealwith 35. The third pin hitter has been split throughout the season, with graduate Roberta Rabelo most recently making a strong impact on the right side in the back half of the conference slate, one of the seven on the roster with 100-plus kills. Additionally, redshirt freshman Brynn Covell has made a spot for herself as a defensive specialist, one of five Sun Devils with over 100 digs on the year.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Kimberlie Haner
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