THIS WEEK: The No. 8 Stanford women’s volleyball team (6-2, 0-0 Pac12) travels to Berkeley, California to open Pac-12 play at rival California (6-5, 0-0 Pac-12), on Tuesday, Sept. 22. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. PT from Haas Pavilion.
CATCH THE CARDINAL: Live stats for the match can be found on the women’s volleyball schedule page on GoStanford.com. Tuesday’s match will also be televised on Pac-12 Bay Area.
SOCIAL MEDIA:
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CONFERENCE OPENERS: Stanford is 12-2 in conference openers under head coach John Dunning, including 8-0 from 2001-08. The Cardinal has played six different conference opponents in league openers during that span. Both losses came at the hands of Cal on the road in Berkeley (2009 and 2011).
SCOUTING CALIFORNIA: Cal went 6-5 in its nonconference matches and ranks fourth in the Pac-12 with 14.98 digs per set. Senior Lillian Schonewise leads the Bears with 2.66 kills per set on .346 hitting. Senior Lara Vukasovic adds 2.23 kills and 1.32 blocks per set, ranking eighth in the conference. Junior setter Alyssa Jensen records 9.54 assists and 2.27 digs per set for the Bears, while junior libero Maddy Kerr is sixth in the Pac-12 with 3.88 digs per set.
THE SERIES WITH THE GOLDEN BEARS: Stanford leads the all-time series with Cal, 67-11. The Cardinal has won six in a row against the Golden Bears, including sweeps in Maples and in Berkeley last season. The most recent Cal victory came during the 2011 season when the Golden Bears defeated the Cardinal at home and away.
PRESEASON ALL-PAC-12: Stanford led all Pac-12 teams with three selections to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team. Seniors Madi Bugg and Jordan Burgess are repeat selections, while redshirt sophomore Merete Lutz is being recognized for the first time in her career.
AJANAKU OUT: Senior middle blocker Inky Ajanaku, the 2014 Volleyball Magazine National Player of the Year, will miss the 2015 season after having surgery for an injury suffered playing with the U.S. National Team over the summer.
A BUGG’S LIFE: Senior Madi Bugg was tabbed the Pac-12 Setter of the Year for the second straight season in 2014. The Apex, N.C., native led the nation with 12.10 assists per set last season and enters this year ranked fifth on the Cardinal’s career assists list with 4,067.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE CLUB: Senior outside hitter Jordan Burgess racked up 19 double-doubles to lead the team in 2014. The human biology major became just the ninth Cardinal player to accumulate more than 1,000 career kills and digs. Burgess now has 1,090 kills and 1,167 digs.
THE HOWARD FILE: Senior outside hitter Brittany Howard, a three-year starter and all-conference selection, is looking to become just the 10th Cardinal player to reach the 1,000 career kill and dig marks. She currently has registered 953 kills and 955 digs.
TOP RECRUIT: Freshman opposite Hayley Hodson begins her career at Stanford after being tabbed the No. 1 overall recruit in the nation in 2015 by Volleyball Magazine. Hodson already has national team experience, most recently winning a gold medal at the 2015 Pan America Cup in Lima, Peru. She leads the Cardinal in kills (3.41) and points (4.11) per set this season.
HOME SWEET HOME: Stanford’s senior class is 51-1 at Maples Pavilion and is currently on a 27 match-winning streak on its home court. Traditionally, Stanford has always protected its home court. The Cardinal is 200-18 at home under head coach John Dunning.
TOP SENIOR: Jordan Burgess is one of 30 candidates in the nation for the Senior CLASS Award, which is based on notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
DEFENDING PAC-12 CHAMPS: The Cardinal secured the Pac-12 title outright after sweeping Cal in the 2014 regular season finale for its 16th conference championship in the Pac-10/12 era, and the 19th overall for the program. Stanford has claimed seven of the past nine Pac-12 titles and eight overall under head coach John Dunning. Since 1986, the Cardinal has finished either first or second in the conference in 27 of 29 seasons.
NATIONAL POLL: Stanford remains at No. 8 in the AVCA poll this week after sweeping then-No. 24 Pacific and Saint Mary’s last week. It marks the Cardinal’s lowest ranking since Oct. 7, 2013 when it was also No. 8. Penn State, Texas, USC, Nebraska and Florida continue to make up the top 5. Seven Pac-12 squads are ranked in the top 25.
BY THE NUMBERS: The Stanford women’s volleyball program has won more NCAA Tournament matches (108), made more Final Four appearances (19) and been in the national championship match (14) more times than any other team in the nation. The Cardinal has captured 19 conference championships and produced 30 or more wins on 17 occasions. Stanford has six NCAA titles and has competed in all 34 NCAA Tournaments, having won all 34 of its first-round matches.
IN THE CLASSROOM: Not only does the team perform well on the court, but the Cardinal also represents in the classroom. Stanford was one of three Pac-12 teams to earn the AVCA’s Team Academic Award, while all five returning starters earned Pac-12 All-Academic honorable mention in 2014. Additionally, senior Jordan Burgess was named to the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-American.
HEAD COACH JOHN DUNNING: Now in his 15th season at the helm of the Cardinal program, head coach John Dunning is one of the most accomplished coaches in the collegiate volleyball world. Dunning has four national championships under his belt, has taken teams to 10 Final Fours and carried six of his 14 Stanford teams to the national title match.
DUNNING BY THE NUMBERS: In 30 years as a head coach, John Dunning is 844-173 (.830), giving him a winning percentage that ranks among the top 5 all-time for Division I coaches. He is 407-71 in his 14 seasons on The Farm, leading all active coaches in the conference by winning percentage (.851).