The ASU volleyball team saw its three-match winning streak come to an end Friday night with a 3-0 loss at No. 2 Washington.
Still, the Sun Devils (14-14, 6-11) return from their final road trip of the season with their NCAA tournament hopes alive, thanks to a five-game win over Washington State Thursday.
The Sun Devils must defeat UA this Friday to finish above .500 and be eligible for a postseason selection.
"We're happy we got that win [over Washington State]," coach Brad Saindon said. "It was a very tough match, but we fought our way through it and found a way to win it."
ASU had a chance to clinch a winning season with a victory over Washington (24-3, 14-2), but the defending national champion Huskies dominated from the outset and won their 12th consecutive match.
With ASU leading the opener 8-7, Washington won six straight points to take command. The Sun Devils got within one at 16-15, but that was as close as they would get. The Huskies finished on a 7-1 run to win 30-22 on the strength of a .350 hitting percentage in the game.
The second game looked much like the first, with the teams trading points early before Washington took over. This time, the Huskies used a 6-1 run to take a 14-10 lead, and then a late 5-0 run put the game out of reach. They won 30-22 again to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
In the third, Washington went on an 8-2 run to jump out in front 15-9, and ASU never got closer than four from that point. The Huskies hit .351 in the game and won 30-23 to finish off the sweep.
Saindon said he felt his team struggled to overcome the effects of the previous night's five-game win.
"We played OK at times, but I just think we were physically and emotionally drained," he said. "We just could never really sustain anything."
Overall, Washington hit .310 and made just 14 attack errors on its way to a 29th consecutive home victory, a streak that dates back to 2004.
Washington senior setter Courtney Thompson had 46 assists, which made her the Pac-10's career leader in assists and put her 10th all-time in NCAA history.
For the Sun Devils, senior outside hitter Nina Reeves led the way with 17 kills, while redshirt freshman setter Marina Mercer had 41 assists in the loss for her seventh straight match with 40 or more.
Also, junior libero Sydney Donahue had 20 digs to run her season total to a Pac-10-best 671, and sophomore outside hitter Margie Giordano added 14 digs.
Reach the reporter at matthew.storey@asu.edu
