TUSCON, Ariz. – Stanford was narrowly defeated, 3-2, by No. 8 Arizona on Friday night at the Arizona Sand Volleyball Courts.
The dual came down to the third and final set in the No. 2 match, with Ivana Vanjak and Payton Chang representing the Cardinal. After splitting the opening two sets, Vanjak and Chang battled well past the 15-point mark, eventually falling 21-19 in the deciding frame.
The Cardinal (12-7 overall, 3-4 Pac-12) began the dual by splitting the first two matches with the Wildcats (14-8, 3-3). No. 4 pair Catherine Raquel and Shannon Richardson opened the scoring with a 21-5, 21-18 win, but Arizona drew level with a win in the No. 5 match. Chelsea Red-Horse Mohl, making her competitive Stanford debut, and partner Kat Anderson lost by a score of 21-14, 28-26 to make it 1-1.
The Wildcats took a 2-1 lead after the Cardinal's top pairing of Kathryn Plummer and Jenna Gray dropped a 21-11, 21-18 decision. Stanford's team of Morgan Hentz and Caitlin Keefe guaranteed a dramatic conclusion to the dual after winning 21-15, 21-17 in the No. 3 match.
The Cardinal returns to action tomorrow when it travels to Tempe, Arizona, to finish the regular season against Arizona State at 3 p.m. PT. Live results for tomorrow's dual will be unavailable.
Full Results
1. Witt/Witt (Ariz.) def. Plummer/Gray (Stan) 21-11, 21-18
2. MacDonald/Hallaran (Ariz.) def. Vanjak/Chang 18-21, 21-19, 21-19
3. Hentz/Keefe (Stan) def. Devlin/Manley (Ariz.) 21-15, 21-17
4. Raquel/Richardson (Stan) def. Burling/Mason (Ariz.) 21-15, 21-18
5. Anselmo/Amaro (Ariz.) def. Red-Horse Mohl/Anderson 21-14, 28-26
