ASU Beach Volleyball: Sun Devils go 1-3 in Pac-12 South Invitational

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 07: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky the Sun Devil stands on the court during the team's first-round game of the Pac-12 basketball tournament against the Colorado Buffaloes at T-Mobile Arena on March 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Buffaloes won 97-85. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 07: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky the Sun Devil stands on the court during the team's first-round game of the Pac-12 basketball tournament against the Colorado Buffaloes at T-Mobile Arena on March 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Buffaloes won 97-85. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

The ASU beach volleyball team defeated Washington Sunday afternoon after falling to No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 USC and Stanford in their first three matches.

The learning curve grew for the ASU beach volleyball team over the weekend.

In their first tournament facing Pac-12 opposition, the team finished 1-3 with losses to conference powerhouses UCLA, USC and Stanford before defeating Washington in their final match Sunday evening.

ASU now sits at 4-10 overall on the season with a 1-7 record against ranked opponents.

Kate Baldwin and Samantha Plaster led the Sand Devils with a 3-1 record on the weekend. The pair came back from an opening loss against UCLA to take three set victories against USC and Stanford before sweeping Washington in the No. 5 matches.

Katie Cross and Cierra Flood picked up two more victories in the No. 4 slot after winning both matches against Stanford and Washington in the second day of the tournament. The pair remains the only duo that hasn’t experienced a lineup change this season.

Following another switch in the No. 2 lineup, Sydney Palmer and Kara Woodard picked up ASU’s second victory in the position this season with a three set victory over Washington.

The Sand Devils will now face a quick turnaround as they get set to travel to Albuquerque for the New Mexico Tournament this weekend.

Let’s take a look at how each match fared for the team over the weekend.

No. 2 UCLA (0-5 L)

The Sun Devils jumped right into action Saturday afternoon, taking on the conference’s top-ranked team in the UCLA Bruins.

Katelyn Carballo and Ellyson Lundberg put up the best performance from ASU, as they extended a three-set match against the Bruins’ No. 3 pair of Zana Muno and Savvy Simo. However, after a 21-19 second set victory, the pair couldn’t complete the comeback, falling by a score of 11-15 in the third set.

Cross and Flood extended tight sets in their No. 4 match, fighting all the way to the end before falling to UCLA’s Mac May and Elise Zappia by scores of 19-21 and 18-21.

Coming off two wins against Tulane and Stanford, Plaster and Baldwin fell to an experienced No. 5 pairing of Izzy Carey and Megan Muret in two sets (12-21, 15-21).

Coach Brad Keenan elected to start Natalie Braun and Frances Giedraitis in the first match of the Sun Devils’ nonpermanent No. 2 positon. In their first match in 15 days, the pair struggled, falling to Lily Justine and Sarah Sponcil by scores of 6-21 and 5-21.

Kwyn Johnson made a return to the lineup in the No. 1 match, as she and Mia Rivera would face the Bruins’ talented twin pairing of Nicole and Megan McNamara. The pair would fall in two sets by scores of 11-21 and 12-21.

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No. 4 USC (1-4 L)

ASU’s second match of the day would pit them in a rematch against the formerly No. 1 ranked team in the nation in USC.

After falling one set short of defeating the Trojans in their home opener, the Devils were only able to take one match off USC in their second meeting in Santa Monica.

Plaster and Baldwin captured the lone victory for the Sun Devils in the match, coming back from a 14-21 loss in the first set to capture consecutive set victories to knock off the Trojans’ No. 5 pair of Cammie Dorn and Lainy Thomas.

Cross and Flood would also extend their No. 4 match to three games, but the late resilience of Jenna Belton and Jo Kremer would power them to a 15-13 victory in the first set.

After a three set match against UCLA, Carballo and Lundberg faced another in their duel against Joy Dennis and Haley Hallgren. Following a 24-22 victory in the first set for ASU, the pair faltered, dropping the next two games by Dennis and Hallgren by scores of 18-21 and 10-15.

Keenan elected to make a change and start Sydney Palmer and Kara Woodard at the No. 2 position, their first pairing since their match against Nebraska Feb. 25. The pair fought closer, but would ultimately fall in two sets to Terese Cannon and Sammy Slater by scores of 9-21 and 14-21.

Johnson and Rivera competed in a close first set against the Trojans’ No. 1 pair of Abril Bustamente and Tina Graudina, but would ultimately fall in the match with a second set loss of 13-21.

Stanford (2-3 L)

The rough start to the tournament continued in Sunday’s first match, as the Sun Devils fell by an overall score of two matches to three in their rematch against the Stanford Cardinal.

Baldwin and Plaster picked up their second straight win in the tournament in a three-set victory over Kat Anderson and Caitlin Keefe in the No. 5 match. The pair would respond from a 19-21 loss in the first set with 21-14 and 16-14 victories in the subsequent sets.

Cross and Flood captured their first win of the tournament with a two-set victory over Payton Chang and Catherine Raquel in the No. 4 match. Following a tight 21-18 victory in the first set, Cross and Flood would pull away for a 21-17 victory late in the second set.

The struggles continued for Carballo and Lundberg at the No. 3 position, as they would fall in straight sets to Stanford’s Courtney Bowen and Kate Formico. It marked the first time that pair had been swept in a match for the entirety of the season.

In their second straight match at the No. 2 slot, Palmer and Woodard struggled against Morgan Hentz and Amelia Smith. ASU would fall by scores of 11-21 and 8-21 in the match.

With Johnson in the No. 1 lineup against Kathryn Plummer and Sunny Villapando, the results weren’t much different from the first time around, as the Sun Devils fell by scores of 15-21 and 9-21.

Washington (4-1 W)

The Sun Devils closed the Pac-12 South Invitational on a high note, picking up their first conference victory of the season against the Washington Huskies.

Plaster and Baldwin collected their third straight victory of the tournament, defeating the No. 5 pairing of Kara Bajema and Emma Calle by set scores of 21-19 and 21-8.

Cross and Flood would follow suit with a thrilling victory in their second match of the day. After falling 24-26 in set two against Anna Crabtree and Natalie Robinson, the pair would respond with a dominant 15-8 set three victory to close the No. 4 match.

After tight losses throughout the weekend, Carballo and Lundberg broke through with a straight set victory  against Carly DeHoog and Shayne McPherson  in the No. 3 match (22-20, 21-15).

Palmer and Woodard would follow the momentum with an exciting victory to their No. 2 match. The pair would take an extra points affair in the second set, 23-21, and would later use a rally to win the match with a 15-12 victory in the third set.

It was the second victory this season for ASU at the No. 2 position.

The lone loss for the Sun Devils came from the No. 1 pair of Johnson and Rivera. The duo fell to 1-11 on the year together with a 16-21, 17-21 loss to Jordan Anderson and Kimmy Gardiner.

Next: ASU Beach Volleyball: Sun Devils finish 1-3 in Stanford Invitational

The Sun Devils will return to the beach this week as they’ll travel to play in the New Mexico Tournament before the Easter weekend.