PHOENIX – Sun Devil Beach Volleyball started Saturday afternoon with a gritty 3-2 win against UC Davis before facing Valley rivals No. 7 Grand Canyon and falling 5-0 at the Canyon Classic on GCU’s campus.
Arizona State (5-5, 2-2 in Pac-12) ended the weekend going 1-2 at the Canyon Classic, with both losses coming against ranked opponents. Two pairs improved their season win totals to seven: Taryn Ames and Sarah Waters at No. 3 and Adriana Nieves Papaleo and Carys Thomas at No. 4. One pair made their season debut against GCU as Jensen Kaelin and Kaitlyn Winkelman competed on court five, taking their match to three sets.
Game One: ASU 3, UC Davis 2
It came down to the final court, but Arizona State was able to take down UC Davis (9-4). Freshman duo Nieves Papaleo and Thomas got the Sand Devils started by winning court No. 4 against the Aggies. They won the first set 21-19, lost the second 19-21, and then came back and finished strong in the third set and went 15-11. Taryn Ames and Sarah Waters clinched the win for the Sand Devils on court No. 3. Ames and Waters made quick work of the Aggies, winning both sets.
Final Results (Order of Finish: 2, 4, 5, 1, 3*)
- Lexi Sweeney/Kylie Wickley (ASU) def. Mitchell/Rollins (UCD) 21-11, 21-14
- McGuire/Miller (UCD) def. Anya Pemberton/Ivey Weber (ASU) 16-21, 21-13, 15-12
- Taryn Ames/Sarah Waters (ASU) def. Olen/Luly 21-11, 21-14
- Adriana Nieves Papaleo/Carys Thomas (ASU) def. Coolbaugh/Lazenby (UCD) 21-19, 19-21, 15-11
- Letvin/Rau-Kim (UCD) def. Kate Fitzgerald/Rylie Kael (ASU) 21-11, 21-17
Game Two: ASU 0, GCU 5
The Sand Devils dropped all five sets against the top-10-ranked Lopes (12-4). In the third wave, Kaelin and Winkelman had an impressive season debut as they won the opening set against their opponent before falliing in three. Lexi Sweeney and Kylie Wickley gave the Lopes a run for their money in the second set, making the set go to extra points but just falling short. Ames and Waters battled it out on court three and also gave GCU a fright when the second set went all the way to 26, but the Sand Devils couldn’t pull it out.
Final Results (Order of Finish: 2, 4, 1*, 3, 5 )
- Hansen/Hughes (GCU) def. Lexi Sweeney/Kylie Wickley (ASU) 21-18, 25-23
- Morin/Navas (GCU) def. Anya Pemberton/Ivey Weber (ASU) 21-11, 21-11
- Sanchez/Dickson (GCU)…
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