This weekend #7 Stanford women’s volleyball will welcome UCLA and USC to The Farm after coming off a four-match road trip. Stanford will face UCLA on Friday at 8:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks before facing USC on Sunday at 1:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Insider. Stanford comes in at 12-4 overall and 7-1 in the Pac-12. UCLA comes in at 9-8 overall and 3-5 in the Pac-12. USC comes in at 15-4 overall and 7-1 in the Pac-12.
Last time out: On Sunday, Stanford defeated Arizona State 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-16). Elia Rubin led the way for Stanford with 15 kills.
RECAP: #7 Stanford WVB gets the job done at Arizona State
On UCLA: The Bruins are off to a shaky start. Just above .500 overall and just below .500 in league play. However, they are starting to catch fire a bit, winning three of their last four matches with a road sweep at Arizona and Arizona State along with getting a split against the Oregon schools at home, defeating Oregon State in straight sets. Against Oregon, they fell in five sets, playing the Ducks tough.
The Bruins are led by sophomore outside hitter Charitie Luper, who is averaging 3.50 kills per set. Luper missed the first half the season, but she is now back. Her return is a major reason for why the Bruins are starting to heat up. Graduate student outside hitter élan McCall is averaging 2.97 kills per set and did a great job of holding down the fort with Luper out. Sophomore middle blocker Francesca Alupei is averaging 1.53 blocks per set, doing a nice job of staying active at the net.
On USC: The Trojans are off to a really strong start. Like Stanford football, they opened up with a home match against Colgate and dominated them in straight sets. Their lone loss in league play was at home against Washington State, losing to them in five sets. In the latest AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll, USC got more votes than any other team that wasn’t ranked, so they are knocking on the door.
Senior outside hitter/opposite Skylar Fields is one of the top players in the nation, averaging a whopping 5.04 kills per set. She’s by far and away the top player on this Trojans team and a big reason why they are off to such a strong start. Freshman outside hitter Jordan Wilson (2.77 kills per set) and senior opposite Emilia Weske (2.46 kills per set) are doing a nice job of taking some of the pressure off Fields who has a lot on per plate. Freshman libero Gala Trubint is averaging 4.20 digs per set, doing her job on defense.
Keys to the weekend: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is contain Luper on UCLA and Fields on USC. Both players will look to get going and have their teammates feed off of their play. If Stanford can neutralize them, I like Stanford’s chances to come out on top.
The second thing Stanford needs to do is feed off their home crowd. It’s alumni weekend and hopefully there will be more people in the house to cheer them on. If they can get going early and feed off that energy, they should be in a good position to get the sweep.
Finally, Stanford needs to keep doing their thing. When Kendall Kipp, Caitie Baird, and Elia Rubin are rolling, Kami Miner is out there giving them easy kill opportunities, Sami Francis and McKenna Vicini are playing tough at the net, and Elena Oglivie is getting digs, this Stanford team is really tough to stop. They just need to keep playing like the well-oiled machine that they are becoming.
Prediction: As should come as no shock, I got Stanford winning both matches. They’re at home and are coming in hot having won six straight matches in a row. I see no reasons to not pick them to get the sweep this weekend. However, I expect the USC match to be a legit challenge because of Fields. So, I’m predicting Stanford to defeat UCLA in four sets and USC in five sets. Should be a fun weekend of volleyball on The Farm.
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