TicketsTEMPE, Ariz. — The University of Cincinnati volleyball team fell to No. 9 Arizona State on Wednesday night, dropping a four-set battle inside Desert Financial Arena.
The Bearcats (15–12, 7–10 Big 12) struck first but couldn’t slow the Sun Devils (25–3, 16–1 Big 12) as the match progressed. Cincinnati never quite found its offensive rhythm, finishing at .219, while Arizona State controlled the night with 60 kills on a .371 hitting percentage and 10 blocks.
Three Bearcats reached double figures. Junior outside hitter Sydney Nolan posted 20 kills on .378, her 10th 20-kill outing of the season, while senior Carly Glendinning added 11 and sophomore Gretchen Sigman delivered 10 on an efficient .556. Sophomore setter Andi Spies directed the offense with 43 assists, marking her eighth 40-assist performance of the year. Glendinning also added 10 digs for her team-leading 10th double-double.
Cincinnati opened the match with a strong first-set showing. A Lilly Gillespie kill capped a 4–0 start, and early strikes from Sigman and Tatjana Simeunovic extended the lead to 9–4. After ASU pulled within one at 12–11, the Bearcats answered with a 4–1 stretch sparked by Nolan to regain control at 18–14. Behind a Paige Pickering ace, UC pushed ahead 21–15 and closed out the opener, 25–21, on another Nolan kill.
ASU responded in the second. After falling behind 2–0, the Sun Devils used 5–1 and 4–1 runs, featuring multiple swings from Noemie Glover, to take a 13–8 lead. Cincinnati trimmed the gap to 13–11, but Arizona State rebuilt separation behind another Glover kill and a 4–1 burst that made it 21–15. UC pulled within 22–19 before a service error ended the set, 25–19.
The third set mirrored the back-and-forth tone of the night. The Bearcats jumped ahead 6–3 behind a Sigman kill before ASU evened things at 8–8. After the Bearcats reclaimed a 12–9 lead, the Sun Devils countered immediately to tie it at 13-all and later used a decisive 9–2 run, powered by Tatum Parrott, to move ahead 22–17. Cincinnati fought back with four straight, including two Glendinning aces, but ASU closed out the frame with three consecutive points.
The fourth stayed tight early before a 6–0 Arizona State run created an 11–6 cushion. UC trimmed the margin to 14–11, but the Sun Devils seized full control down the stretch, stringing together 4–1 and 6–0 bursts to take the set 25–14 and the match.
// UP NEXT
The Bearcats wrap up the regular season slate against Arizona on Friday, Nov. 28, at 5 p.m. ET inside Richard Jefferson Gymnasium.
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