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Under the direction of first-year head coach Sanja Tomasevic, the new look Arizona State Sun Devils finished up the Sun Devil Volleyball Classic with an unblemished 3-0 record.
In fact, the Sun Devils did not even drop a set all weekend.
It was a mixture of the old and the new that got the ASU season off on the right foot. With huge performances from senior middle blocker Oluoma Okaro and senior libero Halle Harker the Sun Devils cruised for most of the weekend.
Game 1: Weber State
It was unknown what to expect from an especially new team, but ASU came out of the gates hot in the first match on Friday morning. The match was a sweep of Weber State 25-18, 25-18, 25-19.
The team was able to grab a lead early and would not relinquish that lead throughout the match, despite a heavy dose of Weber State’s senior outside hitter Amanda Varley who had 14 kills on a whopping 44 attempts.
It was sophomore outside hitter Ivana Jeremic that led the Sun Devils to victory in their first match. She registered 14 kills on 37 attempts with only three errors.
She would finish the match with a double-double in kills and digs, as she added 11 digs.
Jeremic was helped by Okaro and freshman outside hitter Griere Hughes. Okaro had 13 kills and Hughes had 12.
Game 2: North Dakota State University
In a matchup with the Bison, it was Okaro at the front of the charge. The Sun Devils would also sweep this matchup 25-16, 28-26, 25-16 on Friday evening.
Okaro would finish the match with 17 kills on a .333 hitting percentage. She would add four total blocks as well.
Harker helped out ASU with a huge night in the back row notching 22 digs.
The Sun Devil defense played a strong match against the Bison limiting them to a .047 hitting percentage.
Game 3: Boise State University
In its final match of the weekend, ASU was able to glide to another three set victory 25-22, 25-19, 25-19 on Saturday night.
Okaro would lead the team in kills again with 14, and Hughes added another eight kills on an impressive hitting percentage of .300.
Senior outside hitter, and the Valley native, Sierra Nobley tried to put the Broncos into contention in the match with 14 kills, but the ASU offense was efficient and outlasted any effort mounted against it.
There were a few impressive individual performances for the Sun Devils over the course of the weekend, including freshman setter Shelbie Dobmeier.
Okaro: 44 kills, .308 hitting percentage, 35 digs, 6 blocks
Harker: 61 digs, 6.78 digs per set
Dobmeier: 116 assists, 12.89 assists per set, 27 digs
Overall, the Sun Devils came out strong in the 2017 season, but still have to face tough competition when Pac-12 play roles around.
Next up on the schedule is the Gonzaga Invitational. They will matchup with the University of Nevada-Reno, Gonzaga and Portland State. The tournament starts Friday, Sept. 1 and carries into Saturday, Sept. 2.