STANFORD, Calif. – Led by Pacific-North Region Player of the Year Kendall Kipp, six Stanford women's volleyball players earned all-region honors, the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced today.
Joining Kipp on the AVCA All-Pacific North Region Team are Caitie Baird, Sami Francis, Kami Miner, Elena Oglivie and Elia Rubin. Stanford has had at least four all-region players in nine of the last 10 seasons. Players named to the all-region teams are now in contention to become 2023 AVCA All-Americans.
Kipp joins Kathryn Plummer (2017, 2018) as the only Cardinal to repeat as region player of the year. Stanford now boasts 126 all-region selections all-time (including honorable mention).
An outside hitter from Indianapolis, Baird earns her third all-region selection. A four-time All-Pac-12 honoree, she is third on the team with 3.17 kills and 3.81 points per set – ranking 10th in the Pac-12. Baird has led the team in kills 10 times and notched double-digit kills in 17 matches. The Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9, she has hit .300 or better in 13 contests. In two NCAA Tournament matches in 2023, Baird is hitting .482 and is second on the team with 3.88 kills per set.
Francis, a middle blocker from San Diego, earns her first career all-region honors. The All-Pac-12 performer ranks third in the conference with a .386 attack percentage and ninth with 1.12 blocks per set. She has hit .400 or better in 15 matches and recorded four of more blocks 17 times. Francis has led the team in kills in three matches and has reached double-digits five times.
An opposite from Newport Beach, Kipp leads the team and is third in the Pac-12 with 4.06 kills and 5.01 points per set. The fifth-year paces the Pac-12 with 0.47 aces per set, the fourth-best average in a single season in school history. The two-time Pac-12 Player of the Year has registered double-digit kills in 25 of 30 matches played, including five 20-plus kill performances. Kipp has hit .300 or better in 18 matches and has tallied five double-doubles. Her 51 aces in 2023 is the fifth-most in a single season in program history.
Miner picks up her third career all-region selection. The junior leads the Pac-12 and is fourth nationally with 11.76 assists per set. She's guided the Cardinal offense to the best hitting percentage in the nation at .322 – the best mark in school history. The Redondo Beach native is tied for the team lead with 12 double-doubles. She has recorded 40 or more assists in 18 matches, including tying her career-high with 60 against Houston (Dec. 2) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Oglivie, a native of Honolulu, also earns her third career all-region honor. The senior leads the team and is second in the Pac-12 with 4.21 digs per set. She has led the team in digs in 25 matches, reaching double-digits in 28 of 31 contests. She has posted 20-plus digs on six occasions and anchors the Stanford defense which holds its opponents to .192 hitting. The two-time Pac-12 Libero of the Year and nine-time Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, Oglivie is averaging 4.62 digs per set in the Cardinal's first two NCAA Tournament matches in 2023.
Rubin, a sophomore from Santa Monica, earns her second career all-region honor after being named honorable mention last season. The two-time All-Pac-12 performer is tied for the team lead with 12 double-doubles and is second on the team and eighth in the Pac-12 with 3.46 kills and 4.04 points per set. Hitting .300 or better in 15 matches, Rubin has tallied double-digit kills in 20 matches and double-digit digs in 16. The outside hitter had a career-high 23 kills on .415 hitting in the Cardinal's five-set win over Houston in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The No. 2 overall national seed, the Cardinal hosts the Stanford Regional, Dec. 7-9, at Maples Pavilion. (1) Stanford takes on (5) Arizona State on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU. (2) Texas and (3) Tennessee will play in the other regional semifinal on Thursday at 6 p.m. on ESPN2. The winners will meet Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPNU.