Aug. 31, 2007
Minneapolis, Minn. - Freshman Alix Klineman stepped up with 16 kills and led the No. 2 Cardinal women's volleyball team to its second sweep of a ranked opponent in less than a week today, as Stanford defeated No. 12 San Diego 30-24, 30-24, 30-20 at the Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis, Minn. Stanford improves to 2-0 on the season with the win, and will face the No. 9 Minnesota Golden Gophers tomorrow afternoon in continuing tournament action.
Klineman, playing in just her second collegiate match, joined juniors Cynthia Barboza and Foluke Akinradewo with double-figure kills. Barboza (12 kills) and Akinradewo (10 kills, 4 blocks) both recorded double-figure performances for the second-straight match. Senior setter Bryn Kehoe recorded 42 assists, and climbed into third place on the Stanford career assist chart (4,301). Sophomore Amy DeGroot led USD with 13 kills on the night.
Stanford took the first three points of game one, with Klineman ripping a kill down the line for the opening point. The Toreros fought back and tied the match at 4-4, before Barboza stepped up with a kill and an ace and gave the Cardinal a four-point advantage at 11-7. San Diego crept within one at 13-12, but a 6-1 Stanford run that included three kills by Klineman put Stanford back in control, 19-13. A Torero timeout temporarily stopped the Cardinal rally, but two straight aces by Kehoe extended Stanford's lead to seven, 22-15. Barboza's second ace of the game gave Stanford its largest lead at 25-16, but the Toreros took a timeout, and answered with their largest run of the match, an 8-3 rally that pulled them within four, 28-24. Kehoe won a battle at the net to give Stanford a game point opportunity and San Diego couldn't return Akinradewo's ensuing serve to end the game, 30-24.
San Diego took an early lead in game two, but the Cardinal pulled into a tie on a kill by Franci Girard and took its first lead, 6-5, on a quick Akinradewo kill from the middle. The game remained close, with San Diego taking as much as a two-point lead at 14-12. Stanford rallied, taking a four-point lead at 19-15, but the Toreros took the next three points to pull back in the game. Stanford continued to edge away, however, taking its first five-point lead at 26-21. Barboza pounded down a kill to end a long rally and give the Cardinal game point at 29-23, and after a Torero kill, another Barboza kill ended the game at 30-24, sending Stanford to the locker room with its eye on a sweep.
The Toreros were first on the board in game three, but Klineman notched two early kills to keep them from pulling too far away. Stanford took its first lead on a Barboza kill at 4-3, and traded points until a 3-0 run gave Stanford a 12-9 advantage and a lead it would never relinquish. Akinradewo drilled a ball to the floor give Stanford a four-point lead at 18-14, and Barboza's third ace of the match extended the Cardinal lead to five, 21-16. Kehoe dropped in a well-placed tip for Stanford's 23rd point of the game, and followed with another pair of consecutive aces to extend the lead to 25-18. Klineman and Barboza helped Stanford take three of the next four points, and by 29-19, Stanford had its largest lead of the day. Girard pounded down her sixth kill of the match to end game three, 30-20, and complete Stanford's second sweep of the season.
The Cardinal returns to action tomorrow, taking on the host of this weekend's Diet Coke Classic, No. 9 Minnesota. First serve is set for 3:30 pm (CT) at the Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis.