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The ASU volleyball team is off to a smooth start this season, but in order to achieve continued success, leaders need to point other players in the right direction.

So, naturally, the team captain is one of those key people that will be looked upon. ASU senior middle blocker Julia Leddy is ready for the challenge.

"I'm really excited for this year," Leddy said. "Beating Pacific and even Texas Tech, has been the best. All wins so far have been against pretty big teams. It gave us a lot of confidence."

The Sun Devils will need that motivation Friday when opening Pac-10 play against top-ranked USC. Leddy, the team captain, received tournament Most Valuable Player honors last week when ASU captured the Red Raider Classic title.

"I was kind of shocked," Leddy said. "The first games started slow, but the last three went pretty well. But I'm really honored, and was pretty excited."

Leddy averaged 2.90 kills in two matches in Lubbock, Texas. She logged a .361 hitting percentage against Clemson and marked a season-high 18 kills against Clemson.

"My aggressiveness has improved," Leddy said. "I used to not have a lot of confidence, but I'm more loud and aggressive now."

That tenaciousness has helped Leddy progress this season. She has started all five matches, averaging three kills per game. She also leads the team in hitting percentage (.391) and average blocks per game (.50).

"She has shown good leadership on the court," Sun Devil assistant coach Christine Garner said. "She's come out strong and in shape. She's quicker and stronger than the previous year. She is a very consistent attacker and an offensive force."

Leddy has come a long way since playing at Mesa Mountain View High School, where she doubted if she would even see time at the collegiate level.

"I wasn't planning on playing in college until my junior year of high school," Leddy said.

But now, five years later, Leddy has complied an impressive career at ASU. She has recorded a .338 hitting percentage with 719 career kills. Leddy has suddenly become one of the game's best all-around players by making strides every year.

During her freshman season, Leddy averaged 1.13 blocks in 39 games, but made only one start. She led the team with a .328 hitting percentage in her sophomore year and received Pac-10 second-team all-Academic honors. As a junior, Leddy was named tournament MVP of the Loyola Marymount Volleyball Challenge and led all Sun Devils with a .352 hitting percentage.

"I hope we can make the NCAA tournament this year. The second round is the furthest we have been," Leddy said. "It would be awesome to make the Sweet Sixteen or the Final Four, just further than ever before. Hopefully, we can go out with a bang for (head coach) Patti (Snyder-Park)."

Although her collegiate career has almost come to a close, Leddy doesn't plan on putting an end to her playing days at ASU.

"I'll probably stick around and play in the alumni matches," she said with a smile.

Reach the reporter at katie.crane@asu.edu.


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