PROVO, Utah – Trailing 2-0, No. 1 Stanford fought back to force a fifth set at No. 9 BYU, but came up short 15-11 in the final frame in front of more than 3,300 fans at Smith Fieldhouse.
Stanford (2-1) struggled to find its rhythm early in the match, hitting just .182 and .154 in the first and second sets, respectively. For the match, BYU (4-0) out hit the Cardinal .234 to .203. Stanford held a 15.5-14.0 edge in blocks, while both teams tallied five aces.
Junior outside hitter Kathryn Plummer led all players with a season-high 21 kills, but was held to a .176 attack percentage. Junior opposite Audriana Fitzmorris also turned in a season-high with 13 kills on .385 hitting and four blocks.
@StanfordWVB takes the third set 25-21. @BYUwvolleyball leads two sets to one. Tune into @byutv to watch the next set. pic.twitter.com/5WwW37lDCX
— BYUtv Sports (@byutvsports) September 1, 2018
Sophomore outside hitter Meghan McClure finished with 12 kills and a season-best 12 digs for her first double-double of the year, and the fourth of her career. Senior middle blocker Tami Alade recorded eight kills and a season-high eight blocks, while freshman middle blocker Holly Campbell had seven kills and six blocks.
Stanford was at its best in the fourth set, posting a .394 attack percentage with 17 kills on 33 swings and just four errors. The Cardinal held the Cougars to a .156 clip in the fourth and notched five blocks.
No separation in the fourth set. @StanfordWVB @BYUwvolleyball pic.twitter.com/hOBo0JLuXo
— BYUtv Sports (@byutvsports) September 1, 2018
Junior setter Jenna Gray registered 53 assists, six digs and four blocks. Junior libero Morgan Hentz collected 14 digs, while sophomore defensive specialist Kate Formico posted seven digs. Sophomore Sidney Wilson came off the bench and put down three service aces serving for Campbell.
BYU came out hot and leaned on the arm of senior Roni Jones-Perry, who finished with 20 kills on .341 hitting. The outside hitter also had 10 digs, five blocks and two aces for the Cougars. BYU libero Mary Lake had a match-high 18 digs.
Stanford closes out the BYU Nike Invitational on Saturday with a double-header against Wichita State (9 a.m. PT) and West Virginia (4 p.m. PT).