On Sunday at 12:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks, #5 Stanford women’s volleyball will head to Eugene to battle #21 Oregon. Stanford comes in at 6-3 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12 while Oregon comes in at 7-2 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12.
Last time out: On Wednesday, Stanford defeated Cal 3-0 (25-23, 25-21, 25-22). Kendall Kipp led the way for Stanford with 16 kills while McKenna Vicini had a team-high 5 blocks.
Recap: #5 Stanford WVB sweeps Cal in Berkeley
On Oregon: The Ducks are one of the top teams in the Pac-12 as one of only three teams in the league ranked in the top 25 (Washington #18). They joined Stanford for the Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge in Minneapolis earlier this season, losing both matches to #3 Minnesota 1-3 and #20 Penn State 2-3.
The top player on this Ducks team is senior outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller, who is averaging 4.14 kills and 3.25 digs per set. She is off to a fantastic start and is one of the top players in the nation. Freshman outside hitter Mimi Colyer is number two on the team with 3.31 kills per set. Both Nuneviller and Colyer form a dynamic duo. Junior libero Georgia Murphy averages 3.69 digs per set, doing a really nice job of playing defense in the back.
Stanford’s thoughts on the matchup:
“It’s a big, big match of the ranked teams. We’ll see how the league this season goes, but we saw Oregon out in Minnesota and they’re a very good team. Nuneviller is one of the best players in the country. I mean, she’s pretty special and they’re tough to play against. They play fast and they play with a wide variety of accommodations, so we’ll have to have things dialed in to make sure that we defend them at a high level because they will be tough to play.” -Kevin Hambly
“Oh yeah, we’re all super excited to get after it and see what we can do in the conference this year. But, taking those pre-season games really prepared us for what’s ahead, I think…It’s gonna be a good test for us to see how we measure up and all that. But I think with what we got going on right now, we’ll be good and just playing our game.”-Caitie Baird
Keys to the match: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is contain Nuneviller. She’s the top player on this Ducks team and will look to get going early and often. If Stanford can contain her and not allow her to have the kind of impact she’s hoping to have, they should be in good shape.
Secondly, Stanford needs to keep the intensity at the net. It’s unclear when Sami Francis will be back, though it is possible that she plays against Oregon after missing Wednesday’s match at Cal. If she’s not available, Stanford will need to make sure they keep bringing the energy up front. McKenna Vicini will need to continue to play great and then others will need to get going as well. Stanford has done a great job at the net and that play will need to continue even if Francis is still out.
Finally, Stanford just needs to keep finding ways to make big plays late in sets. This match projects to be close, especially since it’ll be on the Ducks’ home floor. Whichever team does a better job of winning clutch points will win this match. Stanford for the most part has done a great job of rising to the occasion when they really need to and they’ll need to continue to do that if they are to get the win at Oregon.
Prediction: Stanford fell to Oregon 3-2 last year in Eugene. I think this year, Stanford will get even with them and win in five competitive sets.
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