STANFORD, Calif. – Kathryn Plummer had 22 kills to lead hot-hitting Stanford to a 22-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-19, regional semifinal women's volleyball victory over Wisconsin on Friday night at Maples Pavilion.
The result sets up a rematch of last year's NCAA title match against Texas (27-2), which squeezed past No. 11 seed Utah, 16-14 in the fifth set to advance to Saturday's regional final at 7 p.m. at Maples Pavilion.
Stanford won the 2016 final in four sets in Columbus, Ohio, to earn its seventh NCAA title. The programs have nine NCAA titles, 21 title-match appearances, and 71 NCAA tournament appearances between them.
After a rough start in first set in which Wisconsin hit scintillating .593, Stanford (29-3) tightened up defensively and held the Badgers to .237 the rest of the way. In each set, Wisconsin (22-10) had fewer kills: 19, 14, 12, 10.
"Congratulations to Wisconsin for being in the Sweet 16. I thought both teams were great defensive teams coming in and this was the opposite of that," said Cardinal first-year head coach Kevin Hambly. "It was a very offensive match with us hitting .436 and them at .315. At times it felt more like a men's match than a women's match and it was fun. I thought it was played at a really high level with low errors. I thought we executed well, especially after the first set.It's a shame this had to be a regional semifinal match because it felt like something beyond that."
However, Stanford was hot offensively throughout the match. The Cardinal had a .436 hitting percentage, with five players hitting .425 or above. Merete Lutz had 16 kills and only two errors on 25 swings for a .560 hitting percentage. Plummer hit .425.
There it is!
— Stanford Women's Volleyball (@StanfordWVB) December 9, 2017
That block gives Lutz 500 in her career, making her just the 8th player in program history to reach the milestone. #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/xfLwJTCZUH
The matchup with Wisconsin carried some intrigue because of the way Stanford rallied from a 2-0 deficit in Madison to advance to the final four last year. This match carried little resemblance to that one, largely because the Badgers had a much different lineup. Wisconsin's biggest threat was 6-foot-8 freshman Dana Rettke, who was on fire in the first set.
Rettke was perfect on six attempts in the opening set, but slipped from a 1.000 hitting percentage to .158 over the final three and finished with 13 kills.
Jenna Gray had 53 assists and libero Morgan Hentz was her typical spectacular self, getting to balls that few would even attempt. Meghan McClure had 13 digs, six kills and an ace.
Morgan Hentz refuses to let the ball touch the ground!
— NCAA Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) December 9, 2017
?? #NCAAVB on @ESPNU pic.twitter.com/HByNvi6fsi
Both teams came out swinging, with Stanford taking a lead in the first set when Jenna Gray took a difficult pass, stretched above and slightly over the net to make the set to Tami Alade, who floored it to put Stanford in front. With a Plummer ace making it, 13-11. But Stanford's serving was unable to get Wisconsin out of system and the Badgers teed off to take the set.
However, Stanford's adjustments paid off. The Cardinal cooled off the Badgers and Hentz was … herself. She reached a ball coming off a block that none of her teammates were prepared to even attempt to reach. That led to a point and a 10-8 lead. Audriana Fitzmorris had a stuff block on Rettke that gave Stanford a 21-16 lead that epitomized the switch in momentum.
"I think the fact that I don't want to let my teammates down is what really motivates me," said Hentz. "If I don't work hard, I am disappointing them. It is my goal to make sure I am pushing myself to be a better player for my teammates every single day."
Stanford and Texas represent two of the superpowers of the sport and Saturday's contest matches teams that are a combined 56-5. A spot in the final four in Kansas City is on the line.