STANFORD, Calif. – After losing five seniors, including three All-Americans, to graduation last season the 2015 Cardinal knew it would be a transition year with several players taking the court in new roles. Couple that with nagging injuries to All-American setter James Shaw, which kept him out more than half the season, and Stanford found itself fighting adversity and searching for its identity throughout the season.
With a final record of 10-18 and 7-15 in the MPSF, Stanford missed the postseason for the first time since 2007, head coach John Kosty’s inaugural year at the helm of the program. Despite this streak coming to an end, there were bright spots for the Cardinal during the year.
Stanford utilized 18 different starting lineups this season as several players found themselves playing multiple positions. Junior middle blocker Conrad Kaminski, the only player to start all 28 matches, led the team with a .400 hitting percentage. Junior outside hitter Madison Hayden emerged as the team leader in kills (255) and points (297.5). Senior Sean Kemper, who had played sparingly as a middle blocker during his first three seasons, transitioned into a back-up setter role. He appeared in 38 sets, racking up 93 assists (2.45 aps).
Redshirt sophomore Gabriel Vega also came into his own, securing the starting spot at opposite midway through the season. He shined as Stanford hosted fourth-ranked BYU who was 13-3 at the time. The Cardinal stunned the Cougars on back-to-back outings as the Kailua, Hawaii native averaged 4.62 kills, 2.25 digs and 4.94 points per set in the two matches. He also hit .375 against BYU, which lost its first match to an unranked opponent since 2011. The wins propelled the Cardinal back into the AVCA poll, where it stayed for the remainder of the season.
Another notable match earlier in the season was a five-set victory over CSUN at home on Jan. 23. After four back-and-forth sets, Stanford asserted itself in the fifth, jumping out to an 8-0 lead behind tough serving from senior Spencer Haly. Junior Conrad Kaminski finished with six blocks in the fifth as the Matadors were held without a kill. For the match, the Cardinal registered 20.5 team blocks, the third-most in the rally-scoring era (2001 to present) in program history. Kaminski finished with a program-best (in the rally-scoring era) 12 blocks to lead the squad.
Two Stanford freshmen saw significant playing time in 2015. Kyle Dagostino came to The Farm as a libero, but with the injuries to Shaw, he found himself as the team’s starting setter for much of the year. The 5-9 native of Tampa, Florida was named to the MPSF’s All-Freshman Team after posting 5.92 assists and 1.20 digs per set. Evan Enriques, who hails from Punalu’u, Hawaii, took over the squad’s starting libero position after also playing some at outside hitter. He paced the team with 1.70 digs per set.
When it was all said and done, Kaminski was recognized by the AVCA (honorable mention) and Volleyball Magazine (third team) as an All-American. He earned his second straight MPSF second team accolades and was joined by Shaw (honorable mention) and Dagostino (all-freshman team) as the Cardinal’s all-conference honorees.
The Cardinal also excelled in the classroom this season. Eleven players were named to the MPSF All-Academic Team, the most of any school in the conference. Being recognized for having a minimum 3.00 GPA were Haly, Hayden, Kaminski, Kemper, Shaw, Vega, Grant Delgado, Clay Jones, Kevin Rakestraw, Alex Stephanus and Daniel Tublin.
At the team’s year-end banquet, three players were recognized with awards voted on by the team. Vega earned the Ruben Nieves Most Improved honor, while Kemper took home the Al Roderigues Mentorship Awards. Kemper and Delgado shared the Don Shaw Most Inspirational Awards.
While Stanford loses two starters to graduation next year, the experiences gained on the court by the young squad will undoubtedly carry over to the 2016 season.
The following are accomplishments and honors from the 2015 season:
Team
-Finished the season ranked No. 14 in the final AVCA top-15 poll
-Marks the eighth straight year with a final top-15 ranking
Individual
All-American: Conrad Kaminski
AVCA honorable mention
-Earns the honor for the second consecutive season
-Marks the eight straight year with an All-American (of any kind) for Stanford
Volleyball Magazine third team
-Second career recognition by the publication for Kaminski (second team in 2014)
All-MPSF
Conrad Kaminski, second team (for the second straight year)
James Shaw, honorable mention (third career honor… honorable mention in 2013, first team in 2014)
Kyle Dagostino, all-freshman team (third Cardinal player to receive this recognition)
Players of the Week
Gabriel Vega, AVCA National Player of the Week (March 10), MPSF Player of the Week (March 9)
Conrad Kaminski, #GoStanford Student-Athlete of the Week (Jan. 6 & March 17)
MPSF All-Academic Team Selections
Grant Delgado
Spencer Haly
Madison Hayden
Clay Jones
Conrad Kaminski
Sean Kemper
Kevin Rakestraw
James Shaw
Alex Stephanus
Daniel Tublin
Gabriel Vega
Team Awards
Gabriel Vega, Ruben Nieves Most Improved Award
Sean Kemper and Grant Delgado, Don Shaw Most Inspirational Award
Sean Kemper, Al Roderigues Mentorship Award
Statistics
In the nation...
TM- 1.34 aces per set (17th)
TM- 11.03 assists per set (20th)
TM- 2.01 blocks per set (28th)
TM- 9.17 digs per set (16th)
TM- .224 hitting percentage (29th)
TM- 11.79 kills per set (21st)
Conrad Kaminski - .400 hitting percentage (7th)
Madison Hayden - 3.11 kills per set (32nd)
In the MPSF...
TM- 1.34 aces per set (3rd)
Conrad Kaminski, .400 hitting percentage (5th)
Spencer Haly, .375 hitting percentage (9th)
Madison Hayden, 3.11 kills per set (9th)
Madison Hayden, 3.63 points per set (10th)
Seniors' Career Honors and Notes
Seniors overall records
4-year: 71-47 (two top-3 finishes in the MPSF)
5-year: 90-56 (three top-3 finishes in the MPSF)
Matt Aiello
-Elite 89 Award Winner (2014)
-Rhodes Scholar Finalist (2015)
-Will work towards a master's in Medieval English at Oxford starting this fall
Grant Delgado
-Volleyball Magazine Third Team All-American (2014)
-All-MPSF honorable mention (2014)
-Three-time MPSF All-Academic selection
-532 career digs are the 9th-most in school history in the rally-scoring era
-1.81 career digs per set ties for the 5th-best mark in program history in the rally-scoring era
Spencer Haly
-Two-time MPSF All-Academic selection
-.412 career hitting percentage is the 2nd-best in the rally-scoring era and the 8th highest overall in school history
-0.90 career blocks per set ranks 5th in the rally-scoring era
Sean Kemper
-Started his first collegiate match at setter this season
-MPSF All-Academic selection
-Already secured a job as a software development engineer for Groupon in Palo Alto
Daniel Tublin
-Three-time MPSF All-Academic selection
-Graduated with a degree in Public Policy (2014) and will earn a master's in the same field this June (2015)
-Will work at an economic consulting firm in Berkeley this summer