The ASU women’s volleyball team (10-16, 0-14 Pac-12) finished out its California road trip on Saturday with a hard fought match against No. 18 UCLA (15-8, 8-6 Pac-12).
The Sun Devils started out strong in the opening set with a kill by freshman outside hitter Griere Hughes to begin the night. Hughes would go on to score once again to take a 4-2 lead over the Bruins.
That lead would soon dissipate with the Bruins going on an impressive 10-6 run. With the attack errors continuing to pour in for the Sun Devils, the Bruins extended their lead.
The Bruins won the first set 25-16, going on a three-kill run with the help of senior outside hitter Reily Buechler and sophomore middle blocker Madeleine Gates.
As the second set opened up, the Sun Devils got off to a slow start. With errors by Hughes and junior opposite hitter Peyton Grahovac, the Sun Devils fell into a 5-1 hole to begin. They would attempt to pull themselves out with short runs of their own, most notably a three-kill effort by Hughes late in the set, bringing the set within five.
The Sun Devils ultimately had the set taken from them after a ball handling error was called on sophomore setter Nicole Peterson, leading the Bruins to a 25-16 victory.
After the break, ASU came out with increased energy. The third set began with a kill by freshman middle blocker Megan Beedie. The period went back and forth in the beginning, with each side taking small leads. The Bruins began to pull away from the Sun Devils after going on a 4-0 run, to take a three-point lead.
The Sun Devils responded promptly, staying close behind the Bruins throughout the set. Following two unforced errors by the Bruins, the Sun Devils cut the deficit to a single point.
Errors would be the downfall of the Sun Devils in the third set. Every time ASU grew closer with the Bruins, they would have an attack error, preventing them from bouncing back.
A game ending kill by Buechler gave the Bruins a 25-21 victory.
Hughes led the Sun Devils with 13 kills, while Buechler led the Bruins with 12 kills.
The Sun Devils sit at the bottom of the Pac-12 with an 0-14 conference record. This is the longest losing streak for the program since 2011 where they lost 11 consecutive games.
ASU returns home on Thursday, Nov. 9 to take on Oregon at 6 p.m.
Reach the reporter at klbroder@asu.edu or follow @KellyB1459 on Twitter.
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