A lot can change in three weeks.
ASU faces a challenge this weekend when they face No. 2 Cal (19-2, 9-2 Pac-12) and fifth-ranked Stanford (14-3, 8-3) at home. But the team seems confident against the tough opponents.
And ASU (5-14, 1-9) does have some reasons to be confident.
The last time they faced off against Cal, coach Jason Watson said his team played well. They were down two sets early, then rallied back to win in the third game. They almost pushed it to a fifth set, but Cal came out on top.
“We played Cal quite well I thought,” Watson said. “We challenged them at their place and we learned after that weekend the significance of being on task.”
Even though the Sun Devils fell in that match, it showed that they can compete with the Golden Bears and senior outside hitter Malia Bachynski believes her team can compete with the top-ranked opponents.
“They are big teams and we have a lot respect for them,” Bachynski said. “But at the same time we have confidence in ourselves as a team that we will be able to beat them this time around.”
Watson said that he was happy to see his team rewarded with a win for their hard work last weekend. He thinks that the win gives the team confidence heading into this weekend.
“It’s nice for the athletes who certainly have put in the time and have been working hard,” Watson said. “It’s nice to see them get a return and validate what it is that they are doing. Hopefully that mindset continues this weekend.”
The last time ASU played Cal the Sun Devil outside hitters had a strong offensive game.
Redshirt sophomore Ashley Kastl led the team with 19 kills in the match and freshman Nora Tuioti-Mariner had 11.
During the Cal game Watson tweaked the rotation and had Tuioti-Mariner attacking from the left side. The freshman has stepped up to the challenge since the move and hopefully will continue her offensive success against Cal this weekend.
The ASU defense will be focusing some attention on Cal senior outside hitter Tarah Murrey. The first team All-American had 16 kills against the Sun Devils. ASU will try to keep her contained.
The ASU offense must play better against Stanford if they want to get the upset. Only junior middle blocker Erica Wilson scored over 10 kills with 12.
An impressive defensive performance by Stanford junior middle blocker Jessica Walker helped the Cardinal subdue the ASU offense. Walker had eight block assists in the match.
Bachynski said that the team learned a lot from the last time they played Stanford and Cal, and this time the players are going to look past the hype of the top-ranked opponents.
“One thing that we want to change is that we want to worry about what’s going on our side of the court,” Bachynski said. “A lot of times we got caught up with what was happening on their side. If we can stay in our system we can do a lot better.”
Watson is looking for his team to step up for the home fans.
“It’s nice at home, we’ve been getting some good crowds,” Watson said. “We certainly would like to rise to this challenge and get better.”
Reach the reporter at ehubbard@asu.edu
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