On Sunday at 11:00 AM PT on Pac-12 Networks, #4 Stanford women’s volleyball will face the Colorado Buffaloes on the road in Boulder. Stanford comes in at 8-2 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12 while Colorado comes in at 9-3 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12.
Last time out: On Tuesday, Stanford defeated Cal on the road 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-19). Cal battled hard, but Stanford showed why they are a top four team in the nation.
RECAP: #4 Stanford WVB sweeps Cal in Big Spike
On Colorado: The Buffaloes lost to UNLV, Colorado State, and Kansas. The UNLV and Colorado losses were at home while the Kansas loss was technically neutral site, but Wichita State was the host, so for all intents and purposes it was a road match. Kansas is ranked #17 while Colorado State is receiving votes. It should also be noted that the Buffs did bounce back against Colorado State one night later on the road, so that was impressive.
The Buffaloes are led by graduate student outside hitter Lexi Hadrych out of UCLA who is averaging 3.49 kills per set on a .263 hitting percentage. Senior outside hitter Maya Tabron (2.95 kills per set) and graduate student middle blocker Skyy Howard (2.15 kills per set) are also averaging 2+ kills per set, so Hadrych has some help. Senior libero Morgan Riddle is averaging 2.53 digs per set while junior setter Taylor Simpson is averaging 10.02 assists per set.
As a team, the Buffaloes average 12.91 kills, 11.68 assists, 1.57 service aces, 10.73 digs, and 2.84 blocks per set while their opponents average 12.50 kills, 11.45 assists, 1.05 service aces, 11.18 digs, and 1.86 blocks per set. The Buffaloes also are hitting .288 while their opponents are hitting .207.
Keys to the match: The first thing Stanford needs to do is contain Hadrych. She’s the top player on this Buffaloes team. If she gets rolling, the Buffs could make this interesting. If Stanford gets her out of system, it’s going to be extremely tough for Colorado to win this match. It's that simple.
The second thing Stanford needs to do is return serves well. Service aces is a big part of Colorado’s game and just in general, their service game is a major strength of theirs. If Stanford returns well and doesn’t allow Colorado to get aces, they’ll be taking away a major part of what Colorado likes to do.
Finally, Stanford needs to keep getting their middle blockers going. Sami Francis and McKenna Vicini are coming off strong performances at Cal. If Stanford can find ways to feed them a bit, that will take pressure off Caitie Baird, Elia Rubin, and Kendall Kipp and give them a more balanced attack.
Prediction: I could see Stanford sweeping Colorado after the way they handled business at Cal, but Colorado is a better team on paper than Cal and should be able to take a set off Stanford. So, I’m going to say Stanford wins in four sets, but as a I said, a sweep wouldn’t surprise me.
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