| LINESCORE | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | F | |
| UC Irvine (14-3, 9-2) | 25 | 27 | 25 | 25 | 15 | 3 |
| Stanford (4-10, 3-7) | 27 | 25 | 27 | 20 | 9 | 2 |
| STAT COMPARISON | ||
|---|---|---|
| UCI | STAN | |
| Kills | 70 | 55 |
| Attack pct. | .333 | .269 |
| Assists | 67 | 54 |
| Aces | 8 | 11 |
| Digs | 51 | 47 |
| Blocks | 12.0 | 9.0 |
STANFORD, Calif. – Returning to The Farm after three weekends on the road, the Stanford men’s volleyball team came up just short against fourth-ranked UC Irvine, 27-25, 25-27, 27-25, 20-25, 9-15, Friday, in Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal drops to 4-10 overall and to 3-7 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, while the Anteaters move to 14-3 and 9-2 in the conference.
Stanford finished with a .269 team attack percentage, its third-highest of the season, and finished with nine blocks and a season-best 11 aces. UC Irvine, which entered the night with a nation-best .354 team hitting percentage, hit .333 offensively, while totaling 51 digs and 12 blocks on the defensive side of the ball.
“Our guys adjusted better tonight and did a better job executing the game plan,” said head coach John Kosty. “We were much more aggressive than last weekend. All around, our starters did a nice job tonight.”
Junior outside hitter Madison Hayden registered a career high 23 kills on a .455 attack percentage to go with 12 digs for his first career double-double. Junior middle blocker Conrad Kaminski added 11 kills, a season-high four aces and a team-high six blocks while hitting .526.
“I thought Madison Hayden played really well,” added Kosty. “He has really come on for us this season. Conrad Kaminski turned in a great match too. I think we are doing the right things.”
Senior middle blocker Spencer Haly totaled eight kills on a .462 attack percentage and three blocks. Redshirt sophomore Gabriel Vega also collected eight kills and had five digs.
“Spencer Haly did a nice job. He got the kills and blocks we needed to win some of those games,” said Kosty.
Freshman setter Kyle Dagostino controlled the offense with a career high 51 assists and was two digs shy of a double-double. Rookie libero Evan Enriques finished with eight digs.
“Kyle truly understands the game of volleyball,” explained Kosty. “He runs a really nice offense. He makes good decisions and gives us opportunities to sideout and score points, and that is what we are really looking to do.”
UC Irvine was led by sophomore Tamir Hershko’s 22 kills, six digs and five blocks. Senior Zack La Cavera chipped in with 19 kills and 13 digs, while senior libero Michael Brinkley tallied 12 digs for the Anteaters, who are tied for first place in the MPSF with BYU.
Stanford closes out the weekend with nonconference action against Hope International University on Saturday, Feb. 21. The Cardinal and Royals will square off at 7 p.m. in Burnham Pavilion. Admission is free.
“These are great matches for us. This is where we learn how to compete in the MPSF,” said Kosty. “We just played a really tough five-set match against a really good team, and we have to go and compete again tomorrow. This is a good opportunity for our guys to refocus and get after it.”