TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona volleyball opened the 2017 Pac-12 season with a straight set victory over rival Arizona State in Tempe, 26-24, 25-18, 25-22.
 
"That was a good one to win," said head coach Dave Rubio, whose Wildcats improved 7-3, 1-0 Pac-12 on the season. "It's tough to win on the road, especially up here. It's always good to beat ASU."
 
The victory was UA's first in Tempe since the 2014 season and broke a streak of four straight matchups between the two teams won by the home team. 
 
Jade Turner recorded a career-high 11 kills on .381 hitting and put down a team-high six blocks. UA had 10 as a team, marking the ninth match in 10 tries in which UA eclipsed the double-digit block mark as a team.
 
In addition to dominating the match at the net, the difference may have come from the service line. Arizona had a season-high seven service aces -- including two apiece from Julia Patterson, Kimberly Gutierrez and Makenna Martin -- while committing just one service error. ASU (10-3, 0-1 Pac-12) had no aces to go along with five errors.
 
"I told the team before the match that the winner would be the team that served the best," said Rubio. "I thought we were aggressive early and it really helped our confidence throughout the match. We won the match tonight because of the way we served."
 
Patterson turned in another great performance, totaling 35 assists and seven digs.
 
Kendra Dahlke led the Wildcats with 12 kills and finished one dig shy of her third double-double of the season.
 
Jade Turner had three kills on seven swings to go along with three blocks while Julia Patterson dished out a dozen dimes and served two aces to help Arizona win a closely contested first set, 26-24. UA failed to convert a pair of set points, up 24-22, but scored the final two points of the set to win it.
 
In the second, UA led wire-to-wire, getting started with a 3-0 Tyler Spriggs run to kick it off and never looking back. UA hit .314 and recorded five blocks to dominate the set, 25-18.
 
Dahlke had five kills in the third set to help Arizona finish off the match in straight sets, 25-22.
 
Up Next: The Wildcats return home to host Washington State on Saturday at 6 p.m. MST to conclude week 1 of Pac-12 play.
 
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