TEMPE — Junior opposite hitter Noemie Glover and junior outside hitter Bailey Miller shined in No. 8 Arizona State’s (8-2) sweep over in-state rival Grand Canyon (8-3 overall) on Saturday night.
In front of 4,753 fans at Desert Financial Arena — the fourth largest since 2013 — ASU coach JJ Van Niel’s side claimed its fifth sweep of its 2025 campaign. Glover and Miller combined for 23 kills — 57% of the team’s kills on the night. Glover extended her double-digit kill streak to five straight, as she posted 12 on the night.
Junior middle blocker Ella Lomigora also reached her second-highest number of blocks for the season, tallying six and recording five kills.
ASU flexed its muscles in the first set, going on a 5-0 run twice, which included one to end the set. Glover continued where she left off in last night’s victory against Pepperdine, tallying six kills in the opening set of the game. The Sun Devils took the first set 25-16, with Miller finishing the set with a kill.
In contrast to last night, where Van Niel’s side dug deep in the first two sets, the team marched to an early lead after the break, forcing GCU to burn one of its timeouts. The Lopes took another timeout following three straight points from the Sun Devils, extending their lead to 17-11.
“I thought last night, we won, and it was a pretty good match, but there were a lot of ups and downs. And tonight we really sustained it,” Van Niel said. “And it’s in front of a big crowd.”
“Playing in front of Texas, playing in that opening weekend with Pitt and Penn State are big moments for our kids because they got to get used to playing in front of big crowds, because if we want to do what we want to do, you’re gonna play in front of some big crowds, especially on the road.”
Glover and Miller continued firing on all cylinders during the second set, with the latter posting four kills and the former recording three. The Sun Devils defended a late Lopes rally, and a kill from junior outside hitter Jillian Neal, plus an attacking error, gave them a 2-0 set advantage.
ASU pulled away in the final set with the victory in sight. Van Niel’s side extended its lead to 12-4 at one point after strong hitting from Glover, Miller and a handful of aces.
Like in Friday night’s win, the final set proved to be ASU’s most dominant set. It’s become a theme this season, with a similar pattern featured in its recent preseason victories against Incarnate Word and Florida Gulf Coast.
“We’re wearing them down at the beginning (of the game),” Lomigora said. “We noticed that GCU reverse swept Pepperdine, so we have that in the back of our minds and we’re coming in with a purpose that we’re not going to let that happen again. We’re constantly reminding each other to just stack points, get points over and over again, so we can keep that lead and finish the game strong.”
Lomigora, who hails from Tempe, held the highest hitting percentage on the team during the win (.625).
“It means a lot,” Lomigora said about playing in her hometown. “It makes me feel a lot of pride for how I’ve been raised, the people I’ve been surrounded by as I’m growing up, and then the impact I want to leave and the legacy I want to leave after I’m done.”
It marks another strong performance from Miller, who is looking ahead to Big 12 play next week.
“We’ve had the same lineup for the past two nights, so that’s been helping with the consistency,” Miller said. “I think the team feeds off Noemie (Glover’s) energy and her overall play.
“I think we are ready for Big 12 and whatever it brings.”
The Sun Devils will host Milwaukee on Sunday in the final game of the Sun Devil Classic. They will travel to Kansas on Friday for their opening conference game on Sept. 26.
Leave a Reply