Season Ends for #3 Seed Volleyball in NCAA Tournament
See the full match recap with the box score, quotes, team stats and match leaders.
A historical 2024 season came to an end on Saturday night for No. 3 seed Sun Devil Volleyball as it fell in four sets to No. 6 seed Texas A&M (25-19, 22-25, 25-15, 25-22) in Desert Financial Arena to end the postseason run in the second round.
Notable Stats
- Arizona State (30-3, 17-1 Big 12) fell to Texas A&M (21-7, 10-6 SEC). The Aggies hit .303 in their win, compared to the Sun Devils' .181.
- This was the last collegiate match for graduates Shania Cromartie, Claire Jeter, Savannah Kjolhede, Roberta Rabelom Mary Shroll, Argentina Ung and senior Geli Cyr.
- The Sun Devils fall to 12-21 overall in the NCAA Tournament.
- Arizona State had 11 blocks, the second match in a row in double figures and ninth this season.
- Outside hitter Cyr led the team in kills with 14, her 22nd match of the year in double figures. She also had eight digs.
- Libero Shroll had a team-high 12 digs, her 31st match with double-digit kills this year. She's had 10 or more in all but two matches this season.
- At setter, Ung had 31 assists and eight digs with four blocks.
- Another Sun Devil with double-digit kills was Cromartie with 10. She added seven digs as well.
- The remaining seniors Jeter, Kjolhede and Rabelo all contributed, getting six, five and six kills, respectively. Kjolhede led the blocking charge with six, Jeter not far behind with five.
- Attendance at the match was 3,322, the 10th match this season with more than 3,000 in attendance at a home match. It is also the sixth-straight home match with more than 3,000.
Set One: Texas A&M 25, ASU 19
The match began with both sides splitting the first 10 points before the Sun Devils took the lead 7-5 with help from an ace by Jeter. The Aggies quickly tied it up again, 8-8, to then take an 11-8 lead. The Sun Devils stopped their 4-0 scoring run, tying it at, 12-12, with a pair of kills and a block from Kjolhede. Texas A&M didn't cool down, however, getting a 17-13 lead over ASU and forcing its first timeout. After Arizona State added on three more with two kills from Rabelo and Cyr to make the deficit 18-16, Texas A&M grew its lead to 20-16 and pushed ASU to call another timeout to slow things down. A&M soon found themselves at set point, 24-17, after a 3-0 run. The Sun Devils held off a few set points, but the Aggies ended up clinching the first set 25-19.
Set Two: ASU 25, Texas A&M 22
The Sun Devils led off the second set up 8-5 with kills from Cromartie, Rabelo, and Cyr plus a block and an ace from Jeter. The Aggies rapidly tied it up 9-9, but ASU would get back-to-back kills from Cromartie and Jeter to get the lead back, 11-9. ASU grew the lead, 15-12, with a block from Jeter and three kills from the Sun Devils. ASU continued to attack and A&M called for a timeout, looking to kill Arizona State's momentum. It proved to be no help, as the Sun Devils pushed the advantage to 20-14. The Aggies went on a 3-0 scoring run to make it 21-18 before the home team called for a timeout. Back-to-Back kills by Rabelo put ASU at set point, 24-20. A service error by the Aggies gave ASU the final point, 25-22, and the Sun Devils tied up the match 1-1.
Set Three: Texas A&M 25, ASU 15
Texas A&M started off this third set hot on a 3-0 scoring run to make it 8-3, forcing ASU into an early timeout. The Sun Devils managed to put the ball away at times, but the Aggies stretched their advantage to 17-7, another Sun Devil's timeout following. Texas A&M reached a 24-14 lead over ASU to obtain set point. The Aggies won the set 25-15 for a 2-1 match lead.
Set Four: Texas A&M 25, ASU 22
The two teams traded points before a kill by Cyr and two blocks by Kjolhede gave the Sun Devils an 8-5 lead. The Aggies tied the set 10-10, but ASU went on a 3-0 run to go up 13-10. Texas A&M evened things up again, 14-14, before ASU got the lead back, 17-14, with help of back-to-back kills from Cyr. Kills from Kjolhede and Cromartie and a block from Jeter helped drive ASU to a 20-17 lead. The Aggies cut the lead to one, pushing ASU to call a timeout. Texas A&M continued to build off their momentum and took control, 22-20. The Sun Devils tackled on two, but the Aggies reached set point, 24-22. An ace won Texas A&M the set, 25-22, and the the match, 3-1.
Final: 3-1 Loss
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