Oct. 5, 2008
Seattle, Wash. - The No. 6 Stanford women's volleyball team picked up a pivotal win on the road today, sweeping the ninth-ranked Washington Huskies at Bank of America Arena in Seattle, 25-17, 25-15, 27-25. The Cardinal (13-2, 4-0 Pac-10) remains perfect after two weeks of conference play, and has now won nine consecutive matches. Washington drops to 11-3 and 2-2 in the Pac-10.
Stanford was led by senior Cynthia Barboza's ten kills, but sophomore Alix Klineman also had an impressive night with nine kills, a .471 hitting percentage and 11 digs. Senior middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo was 7-for-11 (.636) with four blocks, while Cardinal libero Gabi Ailes picked up 13 digs. Sophomore Cassidy Lichtman chipped in 20 assists, five kills and six digs.
Washington was led by Kindra Carlson's 11 kills and two blocks. Stanford outhit Washington, .344 to .101, marking the eighth time in the last nine matches that Stanford has held an opponent below .200.
Stanford swept Washington in Seattle for the first time since 1999, and topped the Huskies in their home venue for the second straight year.
Washington took a brief lead in set one, but down 5-3, Stanford put together a critical 9-2 run. Two consecutive Husky hitting errors allowed the Cardinal to build momentum, and junior Janet Okogbaa put up back-to-back blocks to help Stanford surge ahead 12-7. The Cardinal extended its lead to six at 14-8 when Barboza pounded a ball off the Washington block, and, soon after, Erin Waller stepped back and served four straight points to fully break the set open, 19-10. The Huskies managed to trim the lead to six after some Stanford miscues at 22-16, but the Cardinal pushed forward and took set point on a Barboza ace at 24-16. Okogbaa, who had four blocks of her five blocks in the first set alone, tipped a ball over the Husky block to clinch the set, 25-17. Barboza carried Stanford to a .462 hitting percentage with five first-set kills, while Washington posted a negative percentage with eight kills and nine errors.
Stanford took five of the first six points in the second set, and Barboza picked up her sixth kill to give Stanford a 5-1 lead. Washington managed to whittle the lead down to two at 10-8, but a Husky service error started another damaging Stanford run. Akinradewo and Klineman paired for a block, then ripped two kills apiece to pace a 9-1 Cardinal surge. The duo's efforts gave Stanford a double-digit lead at 19-9, with Klineman serving her fifth ace of the year to put the finishing touches on the run. Stanford took set point when a Husky swing sailed wide of the antenna, 25-14. Klineman's four kills in the second set led all players, and Stanford outhit Washington again, .294 to .091.
The teams stayed together for the early part of the third set, locking in their fifth tie at 9-9. Stanford started to creep away after consecutive kills by Okogbaa and Waller, using the momentum to build a 7-2 run. The Cardinal lead became five on a Husky ball-handling error at 16-11, but Washington wouldn't let Stanford run away this time. The lead was cut to two at 17-15, and not long after, the Huskies won four points in a row to tie at 19. Stanford took a timeout, but a kill by Jessica Swarbrick out of the break put Washington in front, 20-19. Klineman slammed a kill from the back row to end the run, then put up a block with Okogbaa to give Stanford the lead back at 21-20. Washington took the lead back on an ace at 23-22, but an Akinradewo kill and a Husky hitting error swung the lead back in Stanford's favor, 24-23. The Huskies fought off the first Cardinal set point chance, but Akinradewo pounded another kill to give Stanford another shot to win at 25-24. Washington again fought off the threat, but after a Husky service error, Okogbaa and Lichtman put up a big block to seal the win, 27-25. Stanford hit .303 to Washington's .214 in the third set.
Stanford returns to the court Friday at 7 p.m., taking on No. 25 Arizona in Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal will meet Arizona State Sunday at 2 p.m. to conclude its third Pac-10 weekend.