STANFORD, Calif. – Led by freshman Will Rottman, No. 7 Stanford opened the season with a 25-23, 25-17, 25-18 win over Menlo College, Friday, in Burnham Pavilion.
For the match, Stanford (1-0) hit .444 and held Menlo (1-1) to a .115 clip. The Cardinal posted 10.5 blocks and out dug the Oaks, 26-21.
Rottman, an outside hitter from Santa Barbara, hit .421 with a team-best 10 kills to go with five digs, two blocks and an ace. Middle blockers Stephen Moye and Kyler Preso combined for 12 kills and nine blocks.
Senior Paul Bischoff controlled the offense with 34 assists. The setter was 3-for-3 offensively and finished with six digs and three blocks. Redshirt freshman Justin Lui made his collegiate debut at libero and had a match-high seven digs and tallied four assists.
Junior opposite Jaylen Jasper finished with five kills on .500 hitting, three digs and five blocks in two sets played, while junior outside hitter Leo Henken added four kills on .364 hitting in two sets.
Seniors Eric Beatty and Eli Wopat came off the bench to start the third set. Wopat hit .375 with four kills, while Beattly posted two kills and three digs. Junior JP Reily was used as a serving sub in all three sets and notched an ace in the third.
Freshmen Kevin Lamp and Gabriel Miranda also made their collegiate debuts Friday, coming off the bench to serve in all three sets.
Menlo was led by Edin Ibrahimovic, who had a match-high 11 kills, while Collin Jordan added nine kills and five digs.
Stanford is back in action on Saturday, hosting UC Santa Cruz. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. in Maples Pavilion. Admission is free.