On Saturday December 9th, (1) Stanford women’s volleyball fell to (2) Texas 1-3 (16-25, 25-15, 19-25, 22-25) in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. Junior outside hitter Madisen Skinner led the way for the Longhorns with 24 kills and six digs while senior middle blocker Asjia O’Neal had 10 kills. Sophomore outside hitter Elia Rubin (17 kills), fifth year opposite Kendall Kipp (16 kills), and junior setter Kami Miner (38 assists) were the top performers for the Cardinal.
BOX SCORE: Texas at Stanford-Saturday, December 9th
“Congratulations to Texas going on to the Final Four,” Stanford head coach Kevin Hambly said after the match. “They played great. They were aggressive, they attacked as well as any team we played all year. I think they were, they came out and really came at us with the serves and then they're making good shots and making great plays and they made some plays when it mattered and we didn't.
“I thought both teams fought really hard. I thought it was incredible big girl volleyball. They were like women out there. Just playing physical and getting after it and they made a couple more plays and in matches like this, I think we weren't as aggressive as we need to start and we turned that around and they matched it and we matched it and then it became a really fun match to be a part of.
“Just disappointing that you know obviously, I'm not disappointed in anything except for that I don't get to coach these guys anymore. I don't get a coach guys that aren't here: Kipp and Baird and McKenna and Malia anymore. And then I don't get to coach this group because it's a really special group and I love them. They've given so much and it's hard to see a team gives so much and not get a chance to get the reward of winning a title and at least a chance to go to Tampa. So yeah I think that's enough.”
Texas got out to an early 9-5 lead in the first set after a kill by Skinner. After a kill by Stanford middle blocker Sami Francis, it was a 13-11 lead for Texas. Texas then went on a 3-0 run to lead 16-11 as O’Neal got a kill and service ace during that run. Following a kill by Rubin, Stanford trailed 22-16. From there, Texas went on a 3-0 run to close out the set 25-16 as O’Neal had a pair of kills during that run. The Longhorns were up 1-0.
Stanford came out swinging in the second set, jumping out to an early 3-1 lead as Rubin had a kill and service ace. After a kill by Skinner, Texas trailed by one point (4-5). Then, Stanford went on a 4-0 run to lead 9-4 as Caitie Baird got three kills in a row after a kill by McKenna Vicini.
After another kill by Skinner, it was a 14-10 lead for Stanford as Texas was trying to get back in it. But then, Stanford went on a 3-0 run to lead 17-10 as Kipp had a kill, Rubin had a service ace, and Texas had an attack error. Stanford would cruise to a 25-15 set victory from there. A kill from Kipp gave them set point after which an attack error by Texas ended the set. It was tied 1-1.
In the third set, Texas came out guns blazing as they led 4-1 all courtesy of Stanford errors. Stanford would claw their way back into the set, tying things up 9-9 after a kill by Rubin and then 10-10 after a kill by Vicini. Texas then went up 12-10 after a service error by Stanford and a kill by O’Neal.
After back-to-back kills from Kipp and Baird, it was a 17-16 lead for Texas as Stanford was within one point. After a kill by Rubin make it 19-18, Texas went on a 5-0 run to lead 24-18. Rubin got a kill to make it 24-19 before Skinner got a kill to close out the set 25-19. 2-1 lead for the Longhorns.
In the fourth set, Texas led 6-4 after a service ace from Skinner. Stanford tied it up 6-6 after a kill by Rubin and a service ace by Elena Oglivie. After Jenna Wenaas and Elia Rubin traded kills, it was tied 8-8. Texas then went on a 3-0 run to lead 11-8 as Skinner had two kills during that run. It would soon be a 14-10 lead for Texas after a kill by Bella Bergmark.
Texas would lead 20-16 after an attack error by Francis. It looked like they would cruise to a four set victory. But then, Stanford found a way to win three points in a row to make it 20-19 thanks to a service error and attack error from Texas along with a kill from Baird. Texas would shortly go up 22-20 after an attack error from Stanford before the Cardinal responded with two straight points to tie up 22-22 after Baird got a kill and Miner got a service ace. This set was going down to the wire. From there, Texas went on a 3-0 run to win the set 25-22, closing out the match in four sets. Skinner got two kills during that run while a Stanford attack error ended the match.
“I mean, we started out a little slow,” Hambly said. “We made some errors. I thought, they did a nice job of service pressure in [sets] one, three, and four. In two it wasn’t the same. I think we did a nice job of putting pressure on them. But we made a couple errors and then we were trying to climb back the whole time and we never could get back into it. And then the fourth set was, I thought it was back and forth the whole time and we were fighting, but I think that third set was key obviously because we had them on their heels and we were attacking them and we let them off the hook a little bit with some errors and the whole complexion of that match changed just a little bit.”
Starting with Texas, they played the better match. Skinner was fantastic all night long and Stanford simply didn’t have an answer for her. She delivered in crunch time and was the best player on the floor. She deserves to be heading to the Final Four. As a whole, Texas showed why they are the defending national champions.
“She’s a great athlete, she’ a great player, and she has incredible range,” Hambly said of Skinner. “I mean, she was doing some things that were, she was hitting shots all over the place and it was hard to get a bead on her. So I think, she’s just a great player as is O’Neal and as is the whole team. The whole team is loaded with great players just like our team is loaded with great players. So, I think, like I said, it was really physical. Like, it was women out there playing volleyball and it was a fun match to be a part of. I just wish that we were still playing.”
“I think they’re a great team like Kevin said,” Miner added. “I think we battled and it just, we could have done some things better and it just didn’t go our way at the end of the day and it’s just tough to not be able to continue playing with this group.”
“What an amazing night for the Texas Longhorns,” Texas head coach Jerritt Elliott said after the match. “I’m just so proud of where this team started at the beginning of the year and the process of sticking together and having the opportunity to get to a point after a tough Thursday night and to compete here. So, this is why I coach. This is why our players come to Texas is to compete for Final Fours and I want to thank Asjia for coming back, it means a lot. And it’s a special group and we played a really good Stanford team. Hats off to them. They had a tremendous season. I have so much respect for their staff and what they do.
“But, I’ve been coaching a long time and this might be the greatest transformation of a team from start to finish and we just talked about staying with the process and trusting each other, staying committed to one another, the team unity and the work ethic every single day in practice and we never panicked. We just stuck with it and we stuck with what we do and when you do that, good things happen and this is the reward and it’s just a great lesson for our players. So, very proud of them and what they did.”
As for Stanford, really a bummer to once again come up short in the Elite Eight. They had a number one seed again and couldn’t deliver the goods. When you are on your home court, you have to win these matches. To fail to do so a year ago was understandable given where they were in 2021. But to once again come up short in 2023 after reaching this exact same point last year really stings. There’s no other way to put it. The Cardinal had their core group back from a season ago and weren’t able to advance to the Final Four. One has to wonder if maybe this is just the best this group could do and they maxed out their abilities both seasons.
At the same time, that isn’t to take anything away from what Stanford did accomplish this season: A Pac-12 title, a number one seed, and an impressive 29-4 record. While it may take them a couple of seasons to get back to this point, they’ll get another bite at the apple. They’re an elite program and have a good crop of young players who should be able to carry on the torch that is being passed onto them by the players that are leaving.
“Yeah, I mean it was a battle out there,” Rubin said. “I think at times, we let the momentum get over on their side of the net for a little bit too long and they kinda ran with that because they’re a good team. But yeah, obviously heartbroken. Tough we don’t get to practice on Monday.”
Up next for Texas is the Final Four against Wisconsin in Tampa on Thursday. Time is TBA. As for Stanford, they now look ahead to the ACC in 2024. That will present new challenges and new opportunities. It will be fun to see how they perform in that league and whether or not they’ll become the same dominant force in that league that they were in the Pac-12.
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