TEMPE, Ariz. – The Wildcats closed out their season with a reverse sweep of Arizona State in Tempe on Saturday. After dropping the first two sets 23-25, 23-25, Arizona won the final three sets 25-23, 25-19, 15-11.
Arizona totaled 16.5 team blocks and out-hit Arizona State. Sofia Maldonado Diaz was the catalyst for Arizona, recording 20 kills and 11 digs to lead the Wildcats on offense. Jaelyn Hodge had 13 kills and Zyonna Fellows tallied 10 kills, hitting .529, and 13 blocks in her final game as a Wildcat.
Arizona State won the first set, 25-23. The Wildcats hit .323 in the set, led by Jaelyn Hodge with four kills and a .500 clip. Zyonna Fellows, Alayna Johnson, and Sofia Maldonado Diaz knocked down three kills each. Arizona fought back from 17-21 to tie the set at 23-23, but ASU scored the final two points to win the set.
The Sun Devils took the second set, 25-23. In a back-and-forth set, Arizona only had two blocks and couldn’t hold the lead over the Sun Devils to tie the match. Maldonado Diaz had four kills and Dilara Gedikoglu followed with three kills in the set.
Arizona won the third set 25-23 to take the match to a fourth set. Maldonado Diaz and Fellows had four kills to lead the attack and Arizona served two aces to avoid the sweep.
The Wildcats won Set 4, 25-19, to force a fifth set. Arizona dominated for most of the set, leading by as much as 10 points. The Wildcats hit .393 and had five blocks to hold ASU to a .059 hitting percentage. Maldonado Diaz led Arizona with five kills and Hodge had four kills.
Arizona completed the comeback with a 15-11 win in the fifth set. The first 11 points in the fifth set were back-and-forth, but the Wildcats were able to gain the lead at 12-11 and finished the set on a 4-0 run. Maldonado Diaz had four kills and knocked down the game-winning kill to secure the victory for Arizona. The Wildcats had three blocks to hold Arizona State to a .143 hitting percentage.
Match Leaders
Kills: Sofia Maldonado Diaz – 20
Assists: Emery Herman – 45
Digs: Emery Herman – 19
Blocks: Zyonna Fellows – 13
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