STANFORD, Calif. – In a complete team effort, the No. 8 Stanford women’s volleyball defeated visiting Colorado, 25-17, 25-19, 25-21, Saturday, at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. The Cardinal improves to 12-3 on the season and 5-1 in the Pac-12, while the Buffaloes drop to11-5 overall and 3-3 in the conference.
Senior outside hitter Rachel Williams registered her team-best sixth double-double of the season with 10 kills and 12 digs to go with three blocks. She also tied her season-high with two service aces. Senior middle blocker Carly Wopat hit .529 in the match with 10 kills and four blocks. Sophomores Inky Ajanaku, Jordan Burgess and Brittany Howard all tallied nine kills in the win. Ajanaku tallied three blocks in the match, including the 200th of her career.
Sophomore setter Madi Bugg finished with 38 assists, six digs and two aces for the Cardinal. Junior libero Kyle Gilbert posted 16 digs, marking her 13th double-digit dig output of the season. She also registered her first kill of the season on the final play of the match. As a team, Stanford hit .340, while Colorado recorded a .240 hitting percentage. Stanford is now 12-1 on the season when outhitting its opponents.
Stanford captured the opening set against Colorado with a 25-17 victory. The Cardinal, which led the entire set, hit .444 as a team and held the Buffaloes to a .219 clip. Howard, Williams and Wopat each put down three kills to lead Stanford offensively as Bugg racked up 12 assists. Wopat recorded three blocks in the first, while Williams added two. Junior Taylor Simpson paced Colorado with four kills and three digs.
The Cardinal took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-19 win in the second. Stanford continued to spread out its offense as Ajanaku tallied five kills and Burgess, Howard, Williams and Wopat all posted four in the set. Defensively, Gilbert collected six digs in the second, while Williams notched five. Ajanaku added three blocks, including the 200th of her career. Simpson and Alexis Austin each registered four kills to lead Colorado.
Stanford held off Colorado 25-21 in the third set to complete the sweep, despite being outhit by the Buffaloes .290 to .200. Burgess led Stanford with five kills in the set, while Howard, Williams and Wopat notched three each. Bugg collected 14 assists for the Cardinal. Gilbert again paced the defense with seven digs and secured the match with her first kill since her freshman season. Simpson and Austin finished with 10 kills each to lead Colorado.
Stanford hits the road next week, travelling to the Pacific Northwest. The Cardinal will take on Washington State in Pullman, Wash., on Friday, Oct. 18 at 6 p.m. and No. 6 Washington on Sunday, Oct. 20 at 4:30 p.m. in Seattle. Both matches will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks.