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ASU Volleyball: Sun Devils swept by second-ranked Stanford

By James Malamas

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky the Sun Devil performs during the team's quarterfinal game of the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament against the Oregon Ducks T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Oregon won 80-57. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: Arizona State Sun Devils mascot Sparky the Sun Devil performs during the team's quarterfinal game of the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament against the Oregon Ducks T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Oregon won 80-57. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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ASU volleyball fell to Stanford in straight sets on Wednesday night. They now look ahead to their final game against the University of Arizona.

The Sun Devils hosted the No. 2 team in the nation last night as the Stanford Cardinals showed why they pose a threat to make a deep tournament run this year. The Sun Devils battled hard throughout the match but eventually fell three sets to zero (23-25, 14-25, 24-26).

Coming out of the gates, Arizona State looked fast and eager to get the victory. After jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the first set, ASU was able to take a 11-5 lead.

Then, the blocking of the Cardinal showed up. It seemed like every ball that the Sun Devils attacked, the Cardinal were able to get a hand on it and either send it right back into the Sun Devils, or make it easier for their liberos to dig.

For the match, the Cardinal were able to rack up 11.5 blocks compared to ASU’s four. A big part of Stanford’s success on the defensive side of the net was Audriana Fitzmorris.

The 6-foot-6 junior outside hitter left her mark all over this game. She finished with six blocks and added eight kills on a .533 hitting percentage.

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Arizona State’s offense was led by Alyse Ford. This was her seventh game in a row leading the Sun Devil’s team in kills during a match. She had 17 kills on 40 attacking attempts, giving her a .250 hitting percentage.

Even though the Sun Devils were swept in three straight sets, they were able to keep it competitive. The problem was how much Stanford was able to dominate the net – not only on the defensive side, but when they were attacking too. They made sure to hit the ball where it would be difficult for ASU to keep in play.

Courtney Leffel, the star libero for ASU usually averages 4.49 digs per set for the season. Tonight, because of the placement by Stanford’s hitters, Leffel only got 11 digs for the entire match.

The next match is the final match of the season for the Sun Devils as they host in-state rival Arizona on Saturday. Earlier this season, ASU traveled down to Tuscon where they were swept 3-0, but this time around, ASU and their coach Sanja Tomasevic are very excited to get the chance to get revenge.

Next. ASU Volleyball: How senior Carmen Unzue beat the odds. dark

“It is a war time, for us it’s the last match of the season and for them they are going to a tournament after that,” Tomasevic said. “But you know, let’s let them go to the tournament with an L in their mouth.”

All quotes in this article were obtained firsthand by Devils in Detail unless otherwise noted.