STANFORD, Calif. - Behind junior middle blocker Carly Wopat, the No. 8 Stanford women's volleyball team handed Pacific its first loss of the season with a 25-16, 25-22, 25-17 sweep, Saturday, in the Stanford Invitational at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal improves to 6-2 overall, while the Tigers fall to 8-1.
Wopat tied her season high with 17 kills on a season-best .667 hitting percentage. Freshman outside hitter Jordan Burgess finished one kill shy of a double-double with nine kills and 11 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Morgan Boukather also registered nine kills, while freshman Inky Ajanakuposted a season-best five blocks.
Stanford outhit Pacific .276 to .097 in the match. Freshman setter Madi Bugg controlled the offense with 38 assists to go with 13 digs and three blocks. Sophomore libero Kyle Gilbertfinished with 14 digs.
Stanford began the match with a 25-16 win in the first set. The Cardinal fell behind early, but utilized an 8-2 run to capture the lead for good. Stanford hit .209 in the set and tallied four blocks. Pacific committed nine attack errors, hitting just .056 in the set. Wopat led Stanford offensively with five kills, while Bugg, Boukather and Megan McGehee each registered two kills. Defensively, senior Hannah Benjamincollected eight digs, while Gilbert totaled seven.
The Cardinal again fell behind early, but managed to come back and win the second set 25-22. As a team, Stanford hit .341, limiting its attack errors to just two, and again posted four blocks. Wopat put down seven kills in the set, while Boukather recorded four kills and Burgess had three. Bugg guided the offense as she registered 16 assists. Four UOP players posted three kills each in the second.
Stanford completed the sweep with a 25-17 win in the third set. The Cardinal led the entire way, holding the Tigers to a .098 clip. Stanford hit .282 and registered six blocks. Wopat and Burgess each tallied five kills to lead the team. Boukather added three kills, while Ajanaku put down two. Megan Birch finished with 11 kills to lead UOP.
Wopat was named the tournament MVP, while Bugg and Gilbert were selected to the all-tournament team.
Up next, Stanford remains in the Bay Area next weekend. The Cardinal plays host to San Francisco on Friday, Sep. 14 at 7 p.m. and travels to Moraga, Calif., to take on Saint Mary's on Saturday, Sep. 15.
All-Tournament Team
Carly Wopat, Stanford (MVP)
Madi Bugg, Stanford
Kyle Gilbert, Stanford
Gillian Howard, Pacific
Jennifer Sanders, Pacific
Megan Anders, Santa Clara
Anna Eytchison, Loyola (Chi.)