STANFORD, Calif. - The Stanford women's volleyball team dropped a 25-16, 25-15, 25-18 exhibition match to Jiangsu, a club team from China, Wednesday, at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. The match was the Cardinal's first appearance on the Pac-12 Networks.
Junior middle blocker Carly Wopat led the team with 11 kills, three blocks and a .562 attack percentage. Freshman outside hitter Jordan Burgess added eight kills, six digs and three blocks. Rookies Inky Ajanaku and Brittany Howard finished with four kills and two digs each. Stanford was held to a .215 team hitting percentage, while Jiangsu hit .438 in the match.
Jiangsu won the opening set, 25-16. The score was close early, but a 12-3 run by Jiangsu put the set out of reach for Stanford. The Cardinal posted a .062 attack percentage while allowing Jiangsu to hit .314. Burgess led the team with three kills, three digs and two blocks in the set. Qianwen Jiang was 5-for-6 with four digs to lead Jiangsu.
The Cardinal improved its offensive production in the second set despite falling 25-15. Stanford hit .231 and limited its attack, service and blocking errors. Wopat paced the team with three kills, while Burgess, Howard and freshman middle blocker Megan McGehee each recorded two kills. Qian Lu led Jiangsu with six kills in the second.
Jiangsu completed the sweep with a 25-18 win in the third set. The Cardinal posted its best hitting percentage of the night in the set (.343). However, Jiangsu countered with a .455 attack percentage to hold off Stanford down the stretch. Wopat tallied six kills and two blocks in the third. Freshman setter Madi Bugg recorded 11 assists, while Burgess had three kills and three digs. Tingli Zhai collected seven kills to lead Jiangsu.
It marked the fifth match in the U.S. for Jiangsu, which had previously defeated USC in four sets, UCLA in five set and swept both Pepperdine and Arizona. Jiangsu will finish up against California.
Up next, the Cardinal hosts the Stanford Invitational, September 7-8. The Cardinal opens against Santa Clara on Friday and will take on Loyola (Chi.) and Pacific on Saturday.