(Morgantown, WV) With sophomore Jillian Neal stepping up in a big way, No. 9 Sun Devil Volleyball swept West Virginia (25-13, 25-17, 25-21) on the road on Thursday night for a 13th-straight victory.
Notable Stats
- Arizona State (25-2, 13-1 Big 12) took care of business at West Virginia (8-16, 2-11 Big 12) for the 13th win in a row. It was the 16th sweep of the year, which is the second-most all-time. The 25 wins for ASU are the fourth-most in program history.
- The Sun Devils held the Mountaineers to the second-lowest opponent hitting percentage this year at .029, only behind the .024 against Cal Baptist back in September.
- The block continues to be a strong point for Arizona State as the team had 11 in the win, the fourth match in a row in double figures. Both Roberta Rabelo and Savannah Kjolhede led the team with four.
- Playing all six rotations tonight, sophomore Jillian Neal notched 14 kills, a new career high for her. This is the first time in her career reaching double figures in kills. She also had a career high in digs with 10 for her first double-double. She added two blocks (also a personal best) and an ace as well.
- Graduate middle blocker Claire Jeter took sole possession of fourth place for career blocks at ASU, now at 423 after collecting two tonight. She also had six kills.
- Pacing the offense was graduate setter Argentina Ung with 30 assists and a game-high 15 digs for her 12th double-double of the season, all against her former head coach.
- Graduate pin hitter Roberta Rabelo had seven kills tonight, also adding four blocks in the outing.
- Freshman defensive specialist Bella Faria saw the court for the first time since Texas Tech on October 12. She collected a dig and two aces, the latter a career high and part of a big 7-0 run in the third set to close it out.
Set One: ASU 25, WVU 13
The Sun Devils started off going back and forth with the Mountaineers, keeping it close until a six-point scoring run would put Arizona State up 12-7. The run was highlighted by Jeter’s block, putting her in sole possession of fourth place for career blocks at ASU. The Sun Devils would keep their foot on the gas, going on another scoring run to bring the score to 17-10. Brynn Covell added a service ace to the stat sheet, and Rabelo led all players with four kills in the first set. Bailey Miller was able to add a kill near the end of the set, scoring against her former team to spark a three-point scoring run to close out the first set for the Sun Devils, 25-13. ASU held WVU to a .000 clip in the first set.
Set Two: ASU 25, WVU 17
ASU lept out to a quick 5-2 lead, highlighted by a Neal service ace. West Virginia would storm back, making it a one-point game at 7-6. The Sun Devils would make up that ground by going on a three-point run of their own to make it 10-6. The Mountaineers returned the favor by scoring three in a row to bring the score back to one at 10-9. Arizona State would break it wide open with a dominant 10-point scoring run, the longest of the season for the Sun Devils. Despite a three-point run with ASU at set point, West Virginia would not be able to mount a comeback as Arizona State would take the second set by a score of 25-17. Neal collected six kills in the set. The Sun Devils continued their first set defense, holding WVU to a .000 clip through the first two sets.
Set Three: ASU 25, WVU 21
Arizona State jumped out to an early 4-2 lead before West Virginia fought back to tie it at 5-5. The Sun Devils responded with a three-point scoring run to make it 10-6, capped off by a solo block from Jeter. WVU wouldn’t go away, taking the lead at 14-13 after a four-point run. ASU then began to build a lead, scoring seven in a row, which included an ace by true freshman Faria. The Mountaineers continued to show resilience, rallying with a four-point run that was halted by an Ung solo block, making it 22-19. The Sun Devils closed out the set with a kill from Jeter, ending the match. Arizona State won the third set 25-21 over West Virginia.
Up Next
Arizona State will head to Ohio next to face Cincinnati on Saturday at 1 p.m. EST/11 a.m. MST on ESPN+.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Kimberlie Haner
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