HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Sophomores Ruby Sorra and Brooke Rockwell brought home a third-place finish at the 2024 Women's Pairs National Championship at the AVCA Fall National Championship Nov. 15-17. The Cardinal’s other duo of senior Taylor Wilson and freshman Avery Jackson finished tied for 13th place, totaling three wins on the weekend.
Rockwell and Sorra’s efforts mark the second consecutive year a Stanford duo has earned a podium finish at the event. Entering the tournament as the eight seed, Rockwell and Sorra bested their pre-tournament ranking by five places.
Friday saw both duos take on pool play. Sorra and Rockwell went 2-0 in pool 8, topping 57th-seeded Washington pair Egan/Sadeiko 21-17, 21-17 and 25th-ranked Long Beach State University duo Wagdy/Westby 21-19, 21-19. They moved onto the championship bracket Saturday morning, taking on Boise State’s Anderson/Wolden. Jackson and Wilson went 1-1 in pool 12, topping 53rd-seeded Georgia State pair Ebarb/White 21-14, 22-20, followed by a tight defeat by 21st-seeded Florida State pair Durish/Higgins 19-21, 21-17, 11-15. Wilson and Jackson ended the day with a victory, earning the right to continue in the championship bracket with a 21-12, 21-19 win over Arizona’s Nieves Papaleo/Phillips.
Both duos started play Saturday with victories, as Sorra/Rockwell toppled the Broncos’ Anderson/Wolden 21-16, 21-11 and Jackson/Wilson bested UCLA’s Fernandez/Hope 21-19, 21-14. Jackson and Wilson then took on eventual second-place finishers from TCU Alvarez/Moreno, falling 21-19, 21-16 and moving to the 9th-place bracket for play on Sunday. Sorra and Rockwell continued their undefeated streak with two more wins Saturday, topping FAU’s Adams/Svozilova 21-16, 21-13 and Cal Poly’s Martinez/Walter 21-17, 14-21, 15-12 and earning a spot in Sunday’s semifinals matchup.
Sunday saw Jackson/Wilson end play in Huntsville with a tough battle in the ninth-place bracket with LMU’s Poletti-Corrales/Rosenthal, falling 15-21, 19-21.
Rockwell/Sorra recorded its first loss of the tournament Sunday morning, falling 0-2 to TCU’s Alvarez/Moreno 15-21, 17-21, putting them in the afternoon’s third-place match. The Cardinal duo ended its trip to Alabama on a high note, fighting back from a first-set defeat to top Cal Poly’s Ferch/Inskeep 18-21, 21-16, 15-11 and earn the bronze-medal finish.
Play in Huntsville concluded Stanford Beach Volleyball's fall action. The Cardinal's 2025 schedule will be released in the coming weeks.
Friday
Pool Play: Rockwell/Sorra (Stanford) def. Egan/Sadeiko (Washington) 21-17, 21-17
Pool Play: Rockwell/Sorra (Stanford) def. Wagdy/Westby (Long Beach State) 21-19, 21-19
Pool Play: Jackson/Wilson (Stanford) def. Ebarb/White (Georgia State) 21-14, 22-20
Pool Play: Durish/Higgins def. Jackson/Wilson (Stanford) 21-19, 17-21, 15-11
Championship Bracket Play: Jackson/Wilson (Stanford) def. Nieves Papaleo/Phillips (Arizona) 21-12, 21-19
Saturday
Round of 32: Jackson/Wilson (Stanford) def. Fernandez/Hope (UCLA) 21-14, 21-19
Round of 32: Rockwell/Sorra (Stanford) def. Anderson/Wolden (Boise State) 21-16, 21-11
Round of 16: Rockwell/Sorra (Stanford) def. Adams/Svozilova (FAU) 21-16, 21-13
Round of 16: Alvarez/Moreno (TCU) def. Jackson/Wilson (Stanford) 21-19, 21-16
Round of 8: Rockwell/Sora (Stanford) def. Martinez/Walter (Cal Poly) 21-17, 14-21, 15-13
Sunday
Round of 4: Alvarez/Moreno (TCU) def. Rockwell/Sorra (Stanford) 21-15, 21-17
Third-place match: Rockwell/Sorra def. Ferch/Inskeep 18-21, 21-16, 15-11
Ninth-place bracket: Poletti-Corrales/Rosenthal (LMU) def. Jackson/Wilson (Stanford) 21-15, 21-19