Sept. 17, 2011
STANFORD, Calif. - The second-ranked Stanford women's volleyball team swept Colorado, 25-14, 25-15, 25-15, Saturday, at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. The Cardinal moves to 8-1 overall and 2-1 in the Pac-12, while the Buffaloes drop to 5-6 and 0-3 in the conference.
All 14 players on the Stanford roster played in the match. Sophomore outside hitter Rachel Williams led the team with 16 kills and nine digs. Redshirt freshman Lydia Bai posted a career high 10 kills and a .588 attack percentage, while sophomore middle blocker Carly Wopat went 11-2-20 (.450) with five digs and five blocks. Junior setter Karissa Cook tallied 49 assists, seven digs and three blocks. Junior Hannah Benjamin led the defense with 12 digs.
Stanford came out on fire, scoring six unanswered points. Colorado pulled within two at 14-12, but the Cardinal went on a 11-2 run to close out the set with a 25-14 win. Stanford hit .387 in the first, while holding the Buffaloes to a .057 clip. Bai led the team with five kills on nine errorless attempts for a .556 attack percentage. Williams chipped in with four kills and two digs. Junior libero Hannah Benjamin led the defense with five digs. Junior Kerra Schroeder led Colorado with four kills and two digs.
The Cardinal secured a 25-15 second-set victory to take a 2-0 lead in the match. Williams and Wopat each registered five kills in the set. Wopat also tallied three blocks in the second. Stanford once again out hit Colorado, .250 to .156. Schroeder continued to pace the Buffs with four kills and two digs.
Freshman Kyle Gilbert began the third set as the libero for the Cardinal. Stanford cruised to a 25-15 win to complete the sweep. The Cardinal hit a blazing .543 in the set, which had two tie scores and one lead change. Williams led the team with seven kills, while Bai added four. Senior Stephanie Browne got in on the action, registering three kills in the third. Gilbert finished with six digs to lead the defense. Schroeder finished with a team-high 13 kills and seven digs for Colorado.
Stanford hits the road next weekend, travelling to Los Angeles Sept. 23-24. The Cardinal will take on the UCLA Bruins on Friday at 7 p.m. and the USC Trojans on Saturday at 6 p.m.