AUSTIN, Texas – Battling back from an 0-2 deficit, No. 6 Stanford pushed No. 2 Texas to five, but fell 15-25, 23-25, 25-21, 25-13, 16-18, Sunday, in front of 10,899 fans at the Moody Center.
Stanford (3-2) out hit Texas (4-0) for the match, .272 to .236. The Cardinal tallied a season-best 10 aces to go with 7.0 blocks and 52 digs.
Senior Elia Rubin led the Cardinal with a season-high 18 kills on .245 hitting, nine digs, four aces, two blocks and a career-best four assists. Redshirt sophomore Ipar Kurt added a season-high 15 kills on a .353 attack percentage, a season-best three aces, three digs and two blocks.
Stanford was firing on all cylinders in the fourth, hitting .500 (13-1-24) while holding the Longhorns to a -.062 clip. For the match, there were 30 tie scores and 12 lead changes.
Sophomore Taylor Yu started the match at setter, collecting 24 assists, five digs and a kill. She left the match in the third set due to injury. Freshman Logan Parks replayed Yu, totaling a career-high 29 assists, three digs, a kill and two blocks.
Junior Jordyn Harvey turned in her first double-double of the season, recording 10 kills and a career-high 11 digs. The opposite, whose younger sister Taylor is a freshman middle blocker for Texas, also notched a season-best three aces and a block.
Freshman middle blocker Erika Sayer registered a career-high 12 kills on .474 hitting, three blocks and two digs, while sophomore Lizzy Andrew finished with eight kills and two blocks. Freshman libero Spencer Etzler tied for a match-best 11 digs.
Redshirt sophomore defensive specialist Koko Kirsch had a career-high seven digs, while senior defensive specialist Anna Pringle chipped in with two assists and a dig.
Texas was led by outside hitter Torrey Stafford, who posted 18 kills, 10 digs, an ace and two blocks. Cari Spears added 14 kills and six digs, while libero Emma Halter finished with 10 digs, seven assists and two aces. The Cardinal is 23-11 all-time against the Longhorns.
Stanford is back in action on Tuesday at No. 16 Missouri for the Showdown at the Net. First serve is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PT on ESPN.