Oct. 7, 2012
LOS ANGELES - The Arizona State volleyball team took a 3-1 loss at fifth-ranked USC on Sunday afternoon in the Galen Center. The Sun Devils fell in set scores of 17-25, 25-23, 20-25, 23-25.
Arizona State is now 13-6 overall and 2-4 in the Pac-12 while fifth-ranked USC is 16-2 overall and 4-2 in conference.
In the opening frame, ASU fell behind 7-12 in the early goings and took both timeouts by the 8-16 point. Arizona State tried to answer during a three-point streak that had kills from Nora Tuioti-Mariner and Macey Gardner and sandwiched a block assist from Allison Palmer and Whitney Follette, 13-21. USC finished the frame 17-25 to go ahead one set.
In the second, the Sun Devils opened with an 8-6 advantage with help from a pair of kills by Gardner. The Trojans tallied their first lead at 8-9 but ASU quickly responded by taking command of the board, 10-9. Using momentum from four-consecutive points, Arizona State built its largest cushion by that point, 18-13. Holding on to a two-point edge through the remainder of the stanza allowed ASU to even the tilt at 1-1 after taking the second set, 25-23, behind the final kill from Tuioti-Mariner.
The third set opened with four ties and three lead changes before ASU grabbed a two-point hold from back-to-back kills by Tuioti-Mariner and Gardner, 6-4. Wilson kept the Devils in it after four kills dug ASU out of a brief hole and to take back a lead, 13-12. After working from behind 15-20, Follette put up a pair of kills and teamed up with Tuioti-Mariner for a block assist to cut the USC lead to 18-21. The Trojans hung on in the final points to take a 2-1 lead on a set score of 20-25.
Wilson came out swinging in the fourth, recording three of her 19 kills on the night by the 6-7 mark. Working tandem, Gardner and Follette recorded consecutive kills followed shortly later by a pair of Wilson kills to make it 16-17 and back USC into a timeout. The Devil rally kept the match close at 23-24 with late kills from Gardner and Wilson, but USC edged by for the set 19-25 and match, 3-1.
Sun Devils fall 3-1 to USC and will remain on the road to take on Colorado and Utah next week thesundevils.com/sports/w-volle...
-- Sun Devil Volleyball (@SunDevilVB) October 8, 2012
Notes:
Macey Gardner picked up her eighth double-double on the year with 14 kills and 21 digs against the Trojans.
Whitney Follette tied her match-high of eight kills, for the fifth time this year.
Stephanie Preach had a season best 30 digs against USC.
ASU had three hit with double-digit kills; Tuioti-Mariner 10, Wilson 19, Gardner 14.
Up Next: Friday, Oct. 12 at Colorado | 6 p.m. PT
Video: Pac-12 Digital, here
Twitter: @SunDevilVB
Up Next: Sunday, Oct. 14 at Utah | 2 p.m. PT
TV: Pac-12 Network
GameTracker, here
Twitter: @SunDevilVB
Up Next:
The Sun Devils remain on the road and will face Colorado on Friday, Oct. 12 at 6 p.m. with the match being streamed online curtesy of Colorado Athletics. On Sunday, Oct. 14, ASU plays at Utah at 2 p.m. with the match televised on the Pac-12 Network.