Oct. 12, 2012
STANFORD, Calif. - The fourth-ranked Stanford women's volleyball team outlasted No. 7 UCLA, 25-23, 19-25, 28-26, 17-25, 16-14, Friday, at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. The Cardinal improves to 16-2 overall and 8-0 in the Pac-12, while the Bruins drop to 12-4 overall and 4-3 in the conference.
Freshman outside hitter Jordan Burgess turned in a career high 19 kills to go with 19 digs for her team-leading eighth double-double of the season. Freshman middle blocker Inky Ajanaku also registered a career high in kills with 17 on 31 attempts with four errors for a .419 hitting percentage. Junior middle blocker Carly Wopat added 11 kills, six blocks and two aces, while freshman outside hitter Brittany Howard totaled nine kills, a career-best 21 digs and three blocks.
Freshman setter Madi Bugg tallied 32 assists, while senior setter Karissa Cook recorded 25. Sophomore libero Kyle Gilbert finished with a career high 25 digs to lead all players. Stanford finished with a .214 hitting percentage, while UCLA hit .215.
In a back-and-forth set, the Cardinal came out on top 25-23 to claim the lead over the Bruins. Stanford hit .219 in the set and capitalized on 12 attack errors by UCLA, which posted a .089 attack percentage. The Cardinal led 15-10, but the Bruins rallied back to tie the score at 20-20. However, Stanford staved off a late run by UCLA to seal the victory. Burgess led the Cardinal with five kills and three digs. Ajanaku added three kills and two blocks, while Wopat tallied two kills and two blocks for the Cardinal. UCLA was led by Tabi Love and Rachael Kidder, who registered six kills apiece.
UCLA responded with a 25-19 win in the second set. The Bruins found their offensive rhythm, totaling 21 kills on 39 attempts with just three errors to hit .462. There were nine tie scores and three lead changes until UCLA made its final run. Stanford hit .256 in the set and was led by Ajanaku's four kills. Burgess and Wopat added three kills each. Kidder tallied nine kills to lead the Bruins, while Love added six more.
Stanford answered with a 28-26 gritty win in the fourth. The Cardinal came-from-behind twice to capture the set, which had 15 tie scores and nine lead changes. As a team, Stanford recorded 17 kills and five blocks in the set, and posted a .217 hitting percentage. The Bruins were held to a .127 clip on offense. Burgess had seven kills and five digs to lead Stanford, while Ajanaku added six kills and two blocks. Love and Kelly Reeves paced the Bruins with four kills each.
The Bruins forced a fifth set with a 25-17 win in the fourth. The Bruins again found their offensive rhythm as they hit .364, while holing the Cardinal to its lowest output of the night on offense (.184). The score remained close early, but the Cardinal couldn't overcome the deficit down the stretch. Burgess and Wopat finished with three kills apiece for the Cardinal. Love and Reeves again led the Bruins as each put down six kills.
The Cardinal sealed the victory with a 16-14 win in the fifth. Stanford fell behind early, trailing the Bruins 12-9. However a 4-0 run by the Cardinal, capped off by back-to-back kills from sophomore Morgan Boukather, gave Stanford the lead for good. Wopat and Boukather led the team with three kills each in the set. Howard led the defense with seven digs, while Burgess and Gilbert pitched in with six apiece. Kidder and Love tallied three kills each to lead the Bruins and both finished with 25 in the match.
Fans were treated with two special presentations at the break between the second and third sets. The 1982 team, which made the program's first NCAA Final Four appearance, was honored. Several members of that squad, including AVCA Player of the Decade (1980s) Kim Oden, were back on The Farm to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their season. Stanford alum, four-time All-American and three-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings was also recognized at the break. Walsh Jennings signed autographs for fans prior to the match and received a standing ovation from the crowd.
Stanford hits the road next weekend to take on No. 2 Washington and Washington State. The Cardinal will face the Huskies on Friday, Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. and the Cougars on Sunday, Oct. 21 at 11 a.m. Both matches will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks.