TUCSON, Ariz. – Down 2-1, the eighth-ranked Stanford women's volleyball team fought back to defeat No. 14 Arizona (15-25, 25-15, 21-25, 25-23, 17-15, Wednesday, at the McKale Center in Tucson, Arizona. The Cardinal improves to 8-3 overall and to 2-1 in the Pac-12, while the Wildcats drop to 11-4 and 1-2 in conference.
Stanford out hit Arizona .211 to .172 in the match and posted a season high 18.0 team blocks. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Ivana Vanjak paced the squad with nine blocks.
Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Merete Lutz registered a career high 20 kills on a .450 attack percentage to go with a season-best eight blocks to lead the Cardinal overall. Senior outside hitter Brittany Howard was one kill shy of her career high finishing with 16. She turned in her fourth double-double of the year with 10 kills and had a season-best five blocks.
Senior setter Madi Bugg controlled the offense with a season-high 51 assists. She was also solid defensively for the Cardinal with 14 digs and a career-high tying six blocks. Freshman libero Halland McKenna racked-up a match-best 17 digs.
Freshman opposite Hayley Hodson also recorded a double-double for Stanford, totaling 13 kills and 11 digs while also tying her career high with three aces. Senior outside hitter Jordan Burgess added nine kills and 13 digs. Sophomore defensive specialist Sarah Benjamin was also steady for the Cardinal in the back row, finishing with six digs.
Arizona was led by outside hitter Kalei Mau's match-high 23 kills and 11 digs. Nikki Attea added 10 kills for the Wildcats.
Stanford closes out its road trip at sixth-ranked and undefeated Arizona State (13-0, 2-0 Pac-12) on Friday, Oct. 2. First serve is slated for 6 p.m. PT on the Pac-12 Networks.