(Boulder, CO) To clinch a share of the 2024 Big 12 Championship, No. 9 Sun Devil Volleyball won in four sets at Colorado (25-16, 25-18, 19-25, 25-16) on Saturday afternoon at the CU Events Center.
Notable Stats
The Sun Devils clinch at least a share of the Big 12 Championship with this win. This is the first conference title for the program in team history 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).
ASU clinches the Big 12’s autobid to the NCAA Tournament with the win as well.
Arizona State (28-2, 16-1 Big 12) earned its third win in a row against Colorado (12-16, 5-11 Big 12). It is the 16th-straight win, which is the second-longest streak in program history. Additionally, the 28 wins are tied for the most wins this century with last season. It also is tied for the second-most wins all-time.
With a season high of 14 kills, graduate middle blocker Claire Jeter led the team and hit a blistering .722. It’s the second-best hitting percentage this season for ASU with more than 12 kills. It’s Jeter’s sixth match this season hitting over .600 with at least 10 attempts. She also had four blocks.
Both outside hitters notched 12 kills in the win. Shania Cromartie had 12, her eighth match in double figures. Geli Cyr collected 12 as well, her 20th match in double figures, and she added eight digs and an ace.
Graduate setter Argentina Ung dished out 43 assists for her fifth match of the year with 40-plus assists. She also had 10 digs to lead the team and get her 13th double-double of 2024. Additionally, she had seven kills on a .700 clip.
Two additional Sun Devils had double-digit digs. Redshirt freshman Brynn Covell and graduate libero Mary Shroll had 13 and 12 digs, respectively. Shroll has reached double figures in all but two matches this year. For Covell, it was her fifth match with double-digit digs.
In a well-balanced outing, graduate pin hitter Roberta Rabelo had seven kills and a team-best five blocks.
Set One: ASU 25, Colorado 16
The Sun Devils jumped out the gate and took a 5-2 lead over the Buffaloes with the help of a pair of kills by Jeter. Coming out of a timeout taken by Colorado, Ung was able to sneak a kill past the blockers to increase the lead to 10-4. The Sun Devils and Buffaloes exchanged points until Rabelo was able to get a kill from the outside, forcing the Buffaloes to take a timeout with the Sun Devils having a 17-12 lead. Following the timeout, Arizona State continued to roll and took a 22-15 lead with the help of kills by Rabelo, Cyr and Ung. Covell found Cromartie on the outside for an easy kill to take set one, 25-16.
Set Two: ASU 25, Colorado 18
Colorado took an early 4-1 lead over Arizona State until a service ace performed by Jillian Neal tied it back up at five a piece. The Sun Devils continued to roll with that momentum and put together a 3-0 scoring run to take a 9-6 lead over the Buffaloes. After Colorado was able to complete a 4-0 run to tie it up, Arizona State managed to score four in a row to take a 16-12 lead, with the help of a service ace by Shroll. Following the scoring run, the Sun Devils and Buffaloes exchanged points until the Sun Devils were able to manage another scoring run of 3-0 to take a 22-17 lead, with the help of a service ace by Covell. Arizona State continued to roll with another run of three, with the help of a kill by Ung to take set two, 25-18.
Set Three: Colorado 25, ASU 19
The Sun Devils exchanged match points with the Buffaloes to start set three, being tied at 5-5 with the help of kills by Rabelo and Jeter. After Colorado took an 11-7 lead, Arizona State took a timeout to regroup and came out with a sense of urgency, putting together a 3-0 scoring run to bring their deficit within two. Coming out of another timeout taken by the Sun Devils, Jeter and Rabelo teamed up for a block, with the Buffaloes holding onto a 16-13 lead. Arizona State continued to fight after being down early on, but fell short with Colorado taking set three, 25-19.
Set Four: ASU 25, Colorado 16
After falling short in set three, the Sun Devils came out with a vengeance and put together a staggering 10-0 scoring run with Neal serving to take a 11-1 lead, forcing the Buffaloes to take their second timeout of the set. Shroll found Cromartie on the outside for a kill to set up Arizona State with a comfortable 15-4 lead. Colorado put together a few runs of two or three late in the set to close the gap a little, but the damage had been done. An ace from Cyr clinched the win, 25-16.
Up Next
Arizona State will close out the regular season at home on Friday, November 29, against UCF. The Sun Devils will celebrate its seven seniors and graduates and will have a chance to win the Big 12 title outright.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Kimberlie Haner
Click on Logo
