TEMPE – After the unranked Utah State Aggies upset the No. 7-ranked Tennessee in a five-set thriller, No. 2-ranked Arizona State took its home court against the Coppin State Eagles and avoided falling victim to a similar fate in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
The matchup marked Sun Devil coach JJ Van Niel’s third tournament appearance in three seasons coaching at ASU. He didn’t deviate from the trend of first-round sweeps he’s established over the past few years, leading his squad to a victory in its first-round matchup in a 3-0 sweep.
“My message is always to just play our brand of volleyball,” Van Niel said. “We just have to go out and do what we’ve been doing all season, the rest will take care of itself.”
The Sun Devils began with hot hands and recorded six kills through their first eight points.
ASU tallied set-highs of six blocks and four aces in the opening frame, with two coming from sophomore setter Brynn Covell.
Arizona State recorded two six-point runs in the first set, including the set-winning streak that grabbed the first set 25-11.
“It was great,” Van Niel said. “We got some pressure on them from the service line, and we took advantage of that.”
The second set brought the most competition from the Eagles, which held the Sun Devils to close margins until halfway through the set at a score of 14-11 ASU.
Eight total second-set errors from the Maroon and Gold weren’t enough to slow down its 14 kills. ASU won the next 11 of 14 points and claimed the second set 25-14. The first two periods brought no lead changes or ties.
The Sun Devils began the third set with a 4-1 lead, fueled by three kills from junior opposite hitter Noemi Glover. She finished the match with 14 kills on 23 attempts.
The third set was Sparky’s most attack-efficient, recording 13 kills on 23 attempts.
The Sun Devils recorded a third six-point run to complete the 25-12 game-winning the final set to secure an opening round victory.
Arizona State finished the match leading in nearly every metric, as the Eagles had 19 more attack attempts than the Sun Devils, but finished with a -.082 hitting percentage compared to Sparky’s .405.
ASU recorded a season-low seven attack errors through the entire match, and zero in the third set. Coppin State recorded 26 attack errors.
“Our passers do a great job at getting us in system,” senior outside hitter Tatum Parrot said.
ASU will face Utah State in the second round at Desert Financial Arena on Friday at 6 p.m. MST.
“I thought they were really scrappy,” Van Niel said about the Aggies. “Their right side was running pretty fast, we got to get used to that tempo.”
“Anyone can beat anyone in this tournament,” Parrot said. “They have some good hitters, so we’ll prepare well and just play our brand of volleyball.”
Van Niel reminisced on the “sting” of being eliminated from the tournament last year against Texas A&M in the second round.
“Utah State did a great job tonight,” Van Niel said. “I can’t control how well they play. All I can control is our intensity.”
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