On Sunday, #8 Stanford women’s volleyball defeated Washington 3-2 (25-18, 19-25, 23-25, 25-18, 15-5) on the road in Seattle. Elia Rubin (21 kills), Kendall Kipp (20 kills), and Caitie Baird (20 kills) led the way for the Cardinal while Claire Hoffman had 20 kills for the Huskies. Stanford improves to 16-4 overall and 11-1 in the Pac-12 while Washington falls to 16-6 overall and 8-4 in the Pac-12.
In the first set, Stanford got out to a 6-2 lead thanks to a 4-0 run that included three straight kills from Rubin. After Washington made it 10-7, Stanford went on a 3-0 run that included back-to-back service aces from Kami Miner and also a kill by Miner. It was now a 13-7 lead for Stanford.
Washington would narrow things to 15-11 before another 3-0 run by the Cardinal that included an attack error by Hoffman, a kill by Annabelle Smith, and a kill by Rubin. It was now an 18-11 lead for Stanford. Washington would win a few more points the rest of the way, but from there Stanford cruised to a 25-18 opening set victory after a kill by Kipp.
At the beginning of the second set, Washington got out to an incredible 9-1 lead as everything was going their way. Stanford was in a massive hole. Three of those nine points came off kills from Hoffman, who was really in a groove. To Stanford’s credit, they found a way to chip away at the Huskies lead, making it a 15-9 lead for the Huskies after a kill by Baird. After Washington went up 16-9, Stanford went on a 4-0 run to make it 16-13. Things would remain back and forth as Washington led 19-16 later on in the set. From there, Washington would pull ahead to win the set 25-19 as Stanford ran out of gas.
The third set was tight early on as Washington led 6-5 after Hoffman and Kipp exchanged kills. Then, Washington went on a 5-0 run to lead 11-5. After a kill from Rubin, Stanford got within two points (13-11) before Washington went on a 4-0 run to lead 17-11. Stanford would slowly chip away, making it a 19-16 lead for the Huskies before the Huskies got a kill from Sophie Summers to make it 20-16. Stanford then went on a 4-0 run highlighted by back-to-back kills from Baird making it 20-20.
Summer would then get a kill to make it a 21-20 lead for the Huskies after which Baird committed an attack error making it 22-20. From there, Washington would hang on to win the set 25-23. It was now a 2-1 set lead for the Huskies.
In the fourth set, Stanford would get out to an early 4-2 lead after back-to-back kills from Rubin. Stanford would then slowly extend their lead 11-7 after an attack error by Washington and a kill by Baird. Stanford would continue to keep their foot on the gas as they led 21-14 after back-to-back kills from Baird. They were determined to force a fifth set. Washington would add a couple more points to their tally, but this set belonged to Stanford as Rubin got the set-clinching kill. It was now tied up 2-2.
In the 5th set, Stanford got the first two points to lead 2-0 after a kill from Baird and attack error from Washington. Kami Miner was on the serve. After Washington got on the board to make it 2-1, Stanford won seven points in a row that included two service aces from Baird, making it a 9-1 lead. Stanford really turned on the jets and went into another gear.
From there, Stanford cruised to a 15-5 victory in the fifth and final set, winning the match 3-2. Kipp got the match-winning kill as was fitting given her stellar performance. It was a close match overall, but in the end, Stanford pulled ahead in the final two sets and did so in commanding fashion.
For Washington, this is a disappointing loss as they were hoping to gain ground in the Pac-12 standings and send a message on their home court. They played well for much of the match but couldn’t match the gear that Stanford took things in the fourth and fifth sets.
As for Stanford, this is a big-time win. They complete the road sweep of the Washington schools and did so without Sami Francis. Stanford has now won 10 matches in a row and are playing like a legitimate national championship contender. Kevin Hambly said going in this was the toughest road trip of the year, so you know he’s gotta be happy to see his team come out on top like this.
Up next for Stanford is a home match against Utah on Friday. That will begin at 7:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Insider.
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