Feb. 22, 2000
Stanford, Calif. -- The Stanford men's volleyball team improved to 6-7 overall and 6-5 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation after defeating No. 15 UC Irvine 11-15, 15-10, 15-11, 15-6 today at Maples Pavilion.
The Cardinal were led by freshman middle blocker Curt Toppel (Pacific Palisades, CA) and sophomore outside hitter Marcus Skacel (Laguna Niguel, CA). Toppel, who leads the nation in kills-per game (8.44), had a match-high 34 kills on 66 attempts for a .344 hitting percentage. This is the fourth time this season Toppel has recorded more than 30 kills in a match. Skacel recorded a double double in the match, tallying 22 kills and a season-high 16 digs against the Anteaters.
UC Irvine (6-8, 3-6 MPSF) opened the match by taking game one 15-11, behind the play of Ty Loomis and Cory Hinkle. Loomis had a team-high 10 kills in the game, while Hinkle dished-out 24 assists in the opening frame.
Stanford rebounded from the first game loss by recording 25 kills in games two and three before hitting a match-high .571 in the fourth and deciding game.
Junior setter Josh Lukens (San Diego, CA) led the Cardinal with 82 assists, while freshman outside hitter Billy Strickland (Malibu, CA) had 10 kills, nine digs and three blocks (2 solo) on the night.
Prior to today's match, Stanford defeated No. 9 Loyola Marymount 15-8, 15-4, 15-5 at Maples Pavilion.
Stanford will return to action on Friday, February 25 against Pacific at Maples Pavilion. The match will begin at 7 p.m.