ASU Volleyball: Sun Devils fall in five sets to No. 17 Utah

Despite the balanced offensive attack, Arizona State (13-9, 3-6 Pac-12) lost at No. 17 Utah 15-7, 7-4 Pac-12) in five sets (29-27, 23-25, 25-21, 23-25, 15-8) on Friday night.

The bout ended a three-game Pac-12 win streak for the Sun Devils. Utah is familiar with close matches, as they had been in many entering Friday’s matchup. The Utes lost four straight five-set matches, but finally snapped the streak with the win against ASU.

On the other hand, Arizona State is now very experienced in five-set matches. They are 4-2 in those contests, but Friday they just ended up on the wrong end of the stick.

As for the team’s play, the pin hitters had solid nights. Senior Claire Kovensky and freshman Iman Isanovic finished with 12 and 11 kills respectively, while middle blocker Megan Beedie had 10. Andrea Mitrovic and Ivana Jeremic both led the way with 17 kills apiece, which was a season-high for Jeremic.

At setter, seniors Nicole Peterson and Callie Jones got the call on Friday, and both had double-doubles. Jones had 20 assists and 14 digs, a solid night as she is in a battle for the second setter spot. Peterson had 33 assists and 14 digs, which were both season-highs.

Additionally, for the first time this season, five players reached double-figures in kills for ASU. The last time a Sun Devil squad finished a game with five players in double-digits was August 29, 2015 against New Mexico. That match also went to five sets.

Among others, junior Megan Beedie set a career-high in blocks with eight.

The Sun Devils played solid defense as well, as three players reached double-figures in digs, including libero Courtney Leffel, who had 20. This was her 10th match this year with 20 or more digs.

Arizona State plays at Colorado (9-12, 1-10 Pac-12) on Sunday at 1 p.m. MST. The Buffaloes are coming off their first conference win this year. They beat the Arizona Wildcats in five sets on Friday.