On Saturday at 1:00 PM PT on ACCNX, No. 7 Stanford women’s volleyball will welcome No. 3 Louisville to Maples Pavilion for Senior Day. Stanford comes in at 24-4 overall and 16-3 in the ACC while Louisville comes in at 25-4 overall and 17-2 in the ACC.
Last time out: Stanford defeated No. 19 Georgia Tech on the road on Wednesday 3-2 (22-25, 20-25, 26-24, 25-18, 15-12), pulling off a reverse sweep. It was an amazing comeback for Stanford. When they got down 0-2, I thought they were done for, but then they found a way to pull out that third set and from there, the tides shifted in their favor. Ipar Kurt went off for 20 kills and was fantastic for the Cardinal. Given they are hoping to get a top four seed in the NCAA tournament, it was absolutely crucial that Stanford found a way to pull this one out.
BOX SCORE: Stanford at Georgia Tech-Wednesday, November 27th
On Louisville: Louisville has been playing at an elite level all year long. They’ve routinely defeated the top teams in the nation, hence their top three ranking. They are coming off a tough loss at No. 1 Pittsburgh on Wednesday, so having to fly out to face a top ten Stanford team on the road could be tough for them. This will certainly be a great test for both teams today.
The Cardinals continue to be led by graduate student outside hitter Anna DeBeer, who is averaging 3.29 kills per set. Senior outside hitter Charitie Luper is averaging 2.89 kills per set while senior outside hitter Sofia Maldonado Diaz is averaging 2.14 kills per set. Their excellent setter Elle Glock is a redshirt junior while their star libero Elena Scott is a senior. So, they have a lot of senior leadership playing at a high level, which makes them tough to stop.
Keys to the match: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is keep up the intensity at the net. Louisville averages 3.03 blocks per set while their opponents average 1.94. Louisville is used to winning the battle at the net. If Stanford takes that away from them, it’s going to be tough for Louisville to win this match. For your reference, Stanford averages 2.36 blocks per set while their opponents average 1.75, so they’ve improved in this area as the season has gone on.
Secondly, Stanford needs to contain DeBeer. She is absolutely fantastic. If Stanford can hold her under three kills per set and get Louisville out of system, they should be in a good position to win.
Finally, Stanford needs to keep serving well. They average 1.67 service aces per set while their opponents average 0.89. Louisville on the other hand averages 1.46 service aces per set while their opponents average 1.08. Stanford should have an edge in this department and they’ll need that to hold if they are to win this match.
Prediction: It’s Senior Day and Stanford is at home. I gotta roll with Stanford to win in five tight sets.
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