TUCSON, Ariz. -- Madi Kingdon recorded a match-high 17 kills to go with 12 digs and three service aces to lift Arizona (17-8, 7-6 Pac-12) to a 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 26-24) sweep of Washington State (16-11, 3-11 Pac-12) on Thursday night inside the McKale Center.
The Wildcats continue to impress at home, as they improved their record to 13-1 on the season at McKale Center. In addition, they are now a perfect 5-0 at home in Pac-12 play.
Arizona hit a solid .266 for the match while holding Washington State to just a .110 attack efficiency. The Wildcats are now 15-2 on the season when hitting over .200 in a match. Arizona outdug Washington State 40-31, but the Cougars did finish with a 10-6 advantage in blocks.
In addition to Kingdon’s 11th double-double of the season, Penina Snuka recorded her league-best 13th double-double of the year as she dished out 35 assists to go along with 11 digs. Jane Croson also finished with double-figure digs as she added 12 to go with six kills. Taylor Arizobal had eight kills and Halli Amaro recorded seven kills on .417 hitting for the Cats.
The Wildcats jumped out of the gate by reeling off the first four points of the opening set. Arizona remained in control as it pushed the lead to 10-4, forcing Washington State to burn a quick timeout. The timeout proved beneficial for the Cougars as they went on an 8-2 run to tie the score 13-13. The two teams battled to a 16-16 tie before Arizona went on a 6-0 run to take a comfortable 22-16 advantage. The Cats cruised to a 25-18 victory in the set behind seven kills from Kingdon. Arizona held Washington State to just a .022 attack percentage in the set.
Arizona got off to a quick start for the second straight set as the Wildcats took an 8-2 lead to start the frame, forcing the Cougars to burn an early timeout. Washington State could never cut into the lead as UA rolled to a 25-14 victory to take a 2-0 lead in the match. The Wildcats hit an impressive .467 in the set, while holding Washington State to just .171 hitting.
Washington State came out strong in the third set as the Cougars took a 6-2 advantage. However, Arizona responded with a 7-2 run to take a one-point lead. After some back and forth play with both teams battling to a 24-24 tie, the Wildcats got a kill from Kingdon followed by an attack error by WSU to clinch the set and match.
The Arizona defense frustrated Washington State’s top offensive threat all night, as Kyra Holt recorded just nine kills on -.065 hitting. Jaicee Harris led the Cougars with 12 kills on the night.
