The ASU volleyball team has battled inconsistency throughout the beginning of the 2010 season.
The Sun Devils (2-4) enter the ASU Sheraton Invitational today determined to overcome the obstacles that plagued them last weekend.
ASU is set to host its second home tournament of the year, and will face a trio of teams beginning with High Point University on Friday afternoon.
While the Sun Devils have shown they are more than capable of dominating on the court, the struggle has been duplicating those moments.
ASU coach Jason Watson expects to face several opponents in similar positions this weekend.
“I think all the teams that are coming in this weekend are probably at a similar stage in their season,” Watson said. “They are trying to develop some kind of personality. I think that is to be expected the third weekend in. People are still making some decisions.”
Each of the four teams competing in this weekend’s tournament are searching for solutions as the 2010 season kicks into high gear.
“I think we are all trying to figure out a lot of different pieces to our puzzle,” Watson said. “I know that the coach at High Point is fairly new, the coach at Riverside is fairly new. We are all kind of spinning in lots of different circles, trying to find some answers to some questions.”
Despite fighting inconsistency through the first six games of the season, the Sun Devils remain confident in their abilities heading into Friday’s action.
“We have to work on little things,” sophomore middle blocker Erica Wilson said. “It’s not like we can’t do it. We work hard every single day in practice; it just has to show in games.”
The Sun Devils open against HPU, a team that has struggled as of late. The Panthers (2-5) come to Tempe mired in a five game losing streak.
ASU then moves on to battle Utah Valley in the nightcap on Friday. The Wolverines (2-5) are coming off a three set loss at the hands of Boise State on Tuesday.
The ASU Sheraton Invitational concludes for the Sun Devils on Saturday afternoon against UC Riverside. The Highlanders (0-6) are still searching for their first victory in 2010.
ASU is 1-3-1 all time against Riverside.
In preparation for each matchup, Watson has employed film as another aid to help the Sun Devils succeed on the court.
The players not only watch opponent film, but game clips of themselves as well. Film has developed into another tool that the Sun Devils use in hopes of building consistency.
“We really are invested in that process, each of them has to come in and watch film,” Watson said. “We hope one of the byproducts of it is that they can see some of the decisions they make and hopefully kind of look and evaluate and say maybe I can make some better decisions down the road.”
The Sun Devils will have added depth to their roster this weekend due to the returns of senior libero Sarah Johnson and junior setter Cat Highmark. Both Johnson and Highmark have fought injuries in recent weeks.
Watson expects that the returning athletes will make an immediate impact on the court.
“Sarah Johnson is a big part of providing us this constant level of direction so that we know what is going on,” Watson said. “Cat is a steady influence and is also able to create some point scoring opportunities for us defensively.”
Reach the reporter at gregory.dillard@asu.edu
