Last season, Cal Poly Volleyball’s Kayla Murdoch never recorded more than a single kill in a match.
This season, she has broken her single-game kill record three times, including in back-to-back matches.
In 31 hitting attempts, Murdoch, the fifth-year outside hitter, notched 20 kills and recorded only one error against No. 12 Arizona State University on Friday night, breaking her previous record of 12 kills set the night prior.
Based on her performance, head coach Caroline Walters compared Murdoch to Torrey Van Winden, a Cal Poly alum who has her name etched in the Cal Poly Volleyball record book six different times.
Van Winden also happened to be in attendance for Murdoch’s mirrored performance as she would be inducted into the Cal Poly Hall of Fame the following morning.
“I think Kayla Murdoch was absolutely incredible,” Walters said. “I haven’t seen many performances like that in my time. Torrey [Van Winden] was an incredibly accomplished opposite for us that was very difficult to stop, and Kayla looked like Torrey tonight.”
Murdoch’s performance helped push the Mustangs (4-5) to a fifth set against the Sun Devils (9-2), yet it was not enough to beat the nationally ranked ASU as the Mustangs lost 3-2 in their second match of the SLO Classic.
“She’s [Van Winden] such a good player,” Murdoch said. “I’m just honored to be compared to a legend like that honestly.”
Testing the Mustang Lineup
After a set one loss and finding themselves in a six-point deficit in set two, Walters decided to flip the script and change the team’s offensive system.
Walters ran a 6-2 offense, meaning there were three active hitters in the front row at all times with two rotating setters.
With this switch, sophomore outside hitter Aveya Stone and senior setter Samantha Callahan came off the bench and into the match later, followed by junior middle blocker Chloe Leluge in set three.
“I’m so grateful for all the opportunities that my coaches have given me and helping us work every single day to get better,” Stone said. “So I knew when my name was called that I would be ready, so I was just super pumped.”
Stone was effective both offensively and defensively, recording a hitting percentage of .364 and leading the team in blocks alongside sophomore middle blocker Charlotte Kelly, both notching five each.
Chalking up 19 assists, Callahan was a key player in Stone’s effectiveness.
“Me and Aveya are ready to go in whenever we need to and ready to bring that fire. We work on our connection every day at practice, so to see that payoff during games is super cool,” Callahan said.
Junior Alexis Haury was the other setter in the 6-2 rotation, leading both teams in assists with 31 total and was a contributor in Murdoch’s success.
“My connection with Alexis was going off tonight; she was just getting me the perfect point and allowing me to reach my ranges perfectly,” Murdoch said.
Leluge was also an asset to the team’s offensive production as she registered a .714 hitting percentage, making only one error on seven attempts.
The 6-2 setup helped the Mustangs win out-hit and out-block the Sun Devils, yet it was not enough to stop the Sun Devils’ backrow defense and kill efficiency.
What worked for ASU
Although the Mustangs’ front row defense helped slow the Sun Devils’ offensive attempts, their back row defense could not prevent Arizona State’s kill efficiency.
The Sun Devils recorded an overall kill percentage of .462, just .027 more than the Mustangs, but it was enough to claim the victory.
Arizona also tallied five more digs than Cal Poly with 47.
While the possibility of a reverse sweep was evident in the first few points of the fifth set, the Sun Devils quickly shut it down as they gained an 11-6 advantage, not letting the Mustangs see the lead again, finishing the match 15-11.
“We’re able to play with a really good team; they won the Big 12 last year and made a deep tournament run,” Walters said. “So there’s confidence from our ability to play with them, but also can we clean up some little moments here and there and come out with a win in a match like that?”
The Mustangs will look for their first home victory of the season as they close out their preseason and the SLO Classic on Sunday against No. 7 Stanford at 3 p.m. in Mott Athletics Center.