On Sunday, No. 5 Stanford women’s volleyball defeated No. 18 Minnesota 3-2 (26-28, 25-23, 16-25, 25-13, 15-13) in a neutral site match at the Women’s College Volleyball Showcase in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Fiserv Forum). Stanford outside hitter Elia Rubin led the way for the Cardinal with 19 kills, 13 digs, and three blocks while middle blocker Sami Francis had 14 kills and three blocks. Minnesota outside hitters Mckenna Wucherer and Julia Hanson each had 14 kills for the Golden Gophers. Stanford improves to 2-0 overall while Minnesota falls to 0-1.
BOX SCORE: Stanford vs. Minnesota-Sunday, September 1st
This was a back and forth match from start to finish. Both teams had momentum at different times, making for a very exciting and compelling match. In the first set, it was tight early as it was tied 8-8 after a service error by Minnesota followed by a kill by Melani Shaffmaster to even things up for the Gophers. After a kill from Francis for Stanford and a kill from Hanson for Minnesota, it was tied up 16-16. It continued to be a fight.
Minnesota would eventually gain some separation, leading 24-19 after Stanford setter Kami Miner had a set error. Rather than folding up their tent, Stanford went on to win five points in a row to tie up 24-24 before Jordyn Harvey made it six in a row with a service ace. Stanford was now up 25-24 with set point. To Minnesota’s credit, they were able to dig deep and win the first set 28-26 after a successful block from Melani Shaffmaster and Calissa Minatee.
The second set would also be tight as it was tied 4-4 after a kill by Minatee. After it was tied 6-6, Minnesota went on a 4-0 run to lead 10-6. The Cardinal were in some early trouble. Stanford would respond with a 5-0 run to lead 11-10 with the last two points of the run coming via kills from freshman Lizzy Andrew and redshirt freshman Ipar Kurt. After Minnesota led 13-12, Stanford would go on a 3-0 run to lead 15-13 as Harvey got a clutch service ace for the third point of that run.
After a kill by Minatee, it was tied 16-16. Stanford then won two straight points to lead 18-16 as Lydia Grote had a service error followed up by a service ace by Anna Pringle. Pringle’s service game was a major strength for Stanford last year and it was so again in this match. After an attack error by Lizzy Andrew, it was tied up 20-20 as Minnesota was looking to steal the second set. Rather than let Minnesota build more momentum, Stanford won the next two points to lead 22-20 after a kill from Rubin and a block from Rubin and Francis.
Minnesota would then tie it up 22-22 after back-to-back kills from Lydia Grote and Phoebe Awoleye. Stanford then bounced back again as Francis and Rubin had back-to-back kills of their own to make it 24-22. Stanford and Minnesota then traded points as Stanford took the second set 25-23 after a set-clinching kill from Francis. It was tied up 1-1.
In the third set, Minnesota pretty much ran away with it despite Stanford winning three of the first four points. After it was tied 7-7, Minnesota went on a 4-0 run to lead 11-7 and didn’t look back from there. Stanford got within two points but couldn’t close the gap any further. Minnesota would end the set on a 5-0 run to win 25-16 with the last two points coming courtesy of back-to-back service aces from Shaffmaster.
The fourth set was the opposite of the third set as it was now Stanford that won with ease. After Minnesota took an early 2-1 lead, Stanford went on a 6-0 run to lead 7-2 as Jordyn Harvey had back-to-back services aces of her own. After a service error from Lydia Grote, Stanford freshman Taylor Yu had a service ace to make it 11-4. The set was never in question as a kill by Lizzy Andrew clinched the set for the Cardinal with a dominant 25-13 victory.
Tied up 2-2, the match was now heading to a fifth set. Stanford would lead 6-2 after a kill by Ipar Kurt, looking like they were on the verge of a dominant victory. To Minnesota’s credit, they did not back down. After an attack error from Stanford and a block by Mckenna Wucherer and Calissa Minatee, Minnesota led 8-7. Stanford would then respond to retake the lead 11-9 after back-to-back kills from Jordyn Harvey and Elia Rubin. After an ace from Wucherer, it would be tied up 12-12 as Minnesota had yet another response in them. After it was tied 13-13, Stanford finally pulled away for good to win the set 15-13 thanks to a kill from Elia Rubin followed by an attack error by Julia Hanson. It was a 3-2 five set victory for Stanford.
For Stanford, this was a huge win. It’s early in the season and they are integrating a lot of new pieces into the lineup that either weren’t on the team last year or only saw limited action. To beat a top-20 Minnesota team in an arena only a few hours outside of the Twin Cities has to feel good. This is a sign that Stanford is worthy of their top five ranking and that they should feel confident in their abilities to make another deep run in the NCAA tournament.
To touch quickly on their first match of the season against Milwaukee on Friday, Stanford won that match 3-0 (25-20, 27-25, 25-17). Kami Miner was unavailable to play and so freshman Taylor Yu came in to play setter in her place. It was a good opening match for Stanford and built some momentum going into Labor Day Weekend’s showcase in Milwaukee.
Up next for Stanford is a match against No. 3 Wisconsin at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on Labor Day. That will begin at 2:00 PM PT on FOX.
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