It was the most difficult road trip of the season, logistically speaking. The Arizona Wildcats didn’t let that phase them as they secured their first two-game road sweep in conference play since the spring of 2021 with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-17) victory over West Virginia on Sunday morning.
“I think that the freshmen have nothing really to compare it to,” said Arizona head coach Rita Stubbs. “They’re just going to go out there and play and just do what they do…Not to say it doesn’t mean anything to them, but it means probably more to the returnees who’ve been in the midst of it. But it’s nice to be able to reap the benefits of doing well.”
The weekend had the flavor of the Pac-12 with Arizona volleyball playing on Thursday and Sunday this week instead of the Big 12’s usual Wednesday-Friday schedule. The Wildcats also faced an old foe in WVU head coach Jen Greeny, who both played and coached at Washington State. Stubbs faced the Mountaineers’ new leader as a Wildcat player and coach.
Greeny embarked on a rebuilding project with WVU this season and was missing her top hitter, but that’s not Arizona’s concern. The Wildcats went in and did what they were supposed to do against a team that was overmatched,
The win improved Arizona’s record to 16-9 overall and 5-9 in Big 12 play with four matches to go. If they win out, the Wildcats could reach 20 wins for the first time since 2018 when they went 22-11 and went to the NCAA Tournament.
At the very least, the three-match winning streak secured a winning season in Stubbs’ second year at the helm. The Wildcats will finish no worse than 16-13 this year after going 8-23 last year.
“Many people don’t think that’s a big deal, but I do,” Stubbs said.
Outside hitter Jordan Wilson and opposite Jaelyn Hodge both had double-digit kills while hitting .333 or better. They were also part of a strong serving effort by the Wildcats, who ended with six aces against five service errors while putting pressure on the Mountaineers’ serve receive all match.
Serve has been a sticking point in many of Arizona’s matches this year, but Stubbs was pleased with the effort in Morgantown.
“I thought that even though (Wilson) had three errors, she was still picking the right lines and going after it,” Stubbs said. “And I think that anytime you can get a server back there who can run off multiple points, it’s a good day.”
Wilson led the Wildcats with 13 kills on .393 hitting. She added two aces, two assists, and six digs. She contributed 15 points to Arizona’s effort.
Hodge wasn’t far behind with 12 kills on .333 hitting. She also had one assist, one ace, eight digs, and two total blocks. She accounted for 14 points.
Arizona’s serve receive effort showed in its ability to get the middle blockers involved in the offense. Kiari Robey had eight kills on .500 hitting to go with her three total blocks (one solo) and one assist.
Journey Tucker and Alayna Johnson also found success in the middle for the Wildcats. The pair accounted for two kills each. They both hit .333. Tucker tied Robey for the team high in total blocks with three. Two of Tucker’s blocks were solo.
“You want to be able to spread the offense around a lot, not put too much pressure on our pin players,” Stubbs said. “Not to say that they can’t handle it, but when we pass, then it makes us very offensive-minded. And it makes the blockers have to think a little bit more because anytime you can have five options as an attacker, that’s a good day.”
Arizona got off to a hot start on the serve of Carlie Cisneros. The freshman outside hitter had two aces as the Wildcats ran off eight straight points to go up 8-1 in the opening set. It set the tone for the match with the seven-point lead being the final margin in UA’s set one win.
The Wildcats won the first point of the second set. The Mountaineers tied it twice, but the final tie came at 3-3. Arizona used a four-point run and two three-point runs to open up a 14-6 lead. That was the biggest lead of the second set. WVU closed the gap a bit, particularly after Stubbs went to her bench, but the hole was already too deep for the Mountaineers.
The third set was more of the same. West Virginia’s last lead came at 2-1 and the final tie was at 4-4. Arizona used two 6-0 runs to go up 20-9. From there, they only scored in one-point increments, but it was more than enough to get the win and close out the match.
With over five days on the road and the knowledge that they have to leave Tucson again on Wednesday, getting it over early was a necessity.
“I wanted to be able to put more people in off the bench, but in the same breath, you don’t want it to linger on,” Stubbs said.
Arizona last had a road sweep at California on Mar. 19 and Mar. 20, 2021, during the delayed 2020 season. Its last road sweep over two different opponents was against Oregon and Oregon State on Nov. 15 and Nov. 17, 2019.
With the win over Kansas on the last homestand, it was also the first three-match winning streak in conference play since the fall of 2021. Arizona opened the 2021 Pac-12 season with wins over Arizona State, Oregon State, and California.
The Wildcats next play at Colorado on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 6 p.m. MST before returning home to face Iowa State on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 2 p.m. MST.
Lead photo by Madison Farwell / Arizona Athletics