SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Led by redshirt junior Kevin Rakestraw, the ninth-ranked Stanford men's volleyball team opened the 2017 season with a sweep over Mount Olive, 25-15, 25-15, 25-19, Friday at the Thunderdome.
Rakestraw tallied a team-high 11 kills on 14 swings with just one error to hit .714. The middle blocker also registered a team-best five blocks in the win. Redshirt senior Gabriel Vega and sophomore Jordan Ewert each notched seven kills. Ewert also collected nine digs and two aces.
Freshman setter Paul Bischoff racked-up 32 assists in his collegiate debut. The Wheaton, Illinois native directed the Cardinal offense to a .355 attack percentage. Stanford held Mount Olive to a .027 attack percentage and held a 9.0 to 5.0 edge in blocks.
Redshirt junior Clay Jones added six kills on .400 hitting and three blocks for Stanford, while Colin McCall and freshman Stephen Moye each posted two kills.
Also making their collegiate debuts for Stanford on Friday were Matt Klassen and Eric Beatty.
Mount Olive was led by Robert Poole, who tallied a match-high 14 kills. Setter Shane Yeo finished with 20 assists, while libero Josh Donahue had five digs.
Stanford is back in action Friday night against Quincy at 7 p.m. PT in the Thunderdome.