Why the Team Had the Record They Did
Overall, it was a successful season for Tomasevic and her group. The team finished 14-18 with a much improved conference record of 5-15. Last season, the team went 0-20 in a very talented Pac-12, so to see the group win five games has to be considered quite an improvement.
Perhaps the most impressive stretch came during the opening of Pac-12 play, where the Sun Devils went 4-2 and defeated two top-15 ranked opponents in No. 12 Oregon and No. 15 Washington. Both of those matches came in the form of 3-set sweeps and showcased the talent of the young group. With only three seniors, the Sun Devils can use this season’s experience to grow next year.
The most impressive seasons came from Ford and Jeremic. The two each recorded over 300 kills on the season and Ford reached double-digit kills in her final nine games with the Sun Devils.
On the defensive side, Courtney Leffel was the definition of consistency with 506 digs on the year, averaging nearly 4.5 digs a set. Senior middle blocker Carmen Unzue led the group with 86 total blocks and was a key piece of the Sun Devil’s defense. On the year, the Sun Devils held their opponents to a .212 hitting percentage and averaged 12.4 kills per set.
While the team did finish with 18 losses, the majority of the losses came in a 11-game skid in conference play. Due to the depth of the Pac-12, the Sun Devils played ten ranked opponents, but finished with three wins against those teams.
One of main problems for the Sun Devils came in playing teams with lots of size, as on the year ASU surrendered 302 blocks compared to the 214 they recorded.
And while the Sun Devils entered conference play with a 9-3 record, not a single one of those matches went to five sets. In Pac-12 play, ASU only managed to push two matches to five, and finished with a 1-1 record in those matches. Next season, a focus should be on extending matches as during the 11-game losing streak, seven of those losses came in straight sets.