Sports: Cardinal Tames Tigers

Kipp had a match-high 14 kills

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Senior Kendall Kipp recorded a match-high 14 kills to lead No. 14 Stanford to a 25-18, 25-12, 25-18 win over Tennessee State, Saturday, at the Gentry Center.

Stanford out hit Tennessee State, .300 to .124, and racked up 9.0 blocks and seven aces.

Menlo College Women’s Volleyball splits on final day of William Jessup Invitational

Photo, Recap Credit: Menlo College

ROCKLIN, Calif. – Coming off the heels of a perfect beginning to the season, the competition was upped for Menlo Women's Volleyball in the final day of the William Jessup Invitational. They were not able to "run away" with the matches like they did one day ago, playing in two tightly contested matches. The end results saw the Oaks splitting their two contests, dropping their opener to Life Pacific College in the fifth and final set, while sweeping University of Antelope Valley in straight sets to improve their record to 3-1 after the first two days of competition.

Menlo vs. Life Pacific College (28-30, 21-25, 25-18, 28-26, 12-15)

If you were looking for arguably the best match of the William Jessup Invitational, you might have found it with this one between the Oaks and Warriors. The scores listed above tell the story, as all five sets featured some fantastic volleyball from both squads. The Oaks opened up the first set with an 8-3 advantage thanks to several contributors, highlighted by a pair of blocks from Maggie McDonald, picking up where she left off after a solid day one. This thing would tighten up however, and actually saw the Oaks trail 19-15 at one point after the Warriors took six of seven points to pull away from a tie set. The Oaks would not go down quietly, though, with Bailey Gamez providing an ace and a kill, and a pair of big kills from Kenzie Carpenter to tie it at 22-22. The match proceeded to enter the extra rounds with both teams knotted up at 24-24, and despite taking a 28-27, the Oaks could not put it away, and the Warriors took the next three points to escape with a 30-28 win.

Set two was just as back-and-forth as the opener, only this time it was that way from the onset. Neither team led by more than three points en route to a 20-20 tie late in the set. After a timeout from Menlo, the Warriors went on another late surge to take eight of the final ten points and win set two 25-21, putting the Oaks on the brink of defeat. They came back determined in the third set, though, led by a strong opening from Sierra Buscher, who aided the early cause for victory with a service ace and kill to put the Oaks up 6-4. This, of course, would not last long, with the score staying even for a majority of the set. This time it would be the Oaks taking the late lead on a powerful run, when they trailed 15-13. Coming out of a timeout, Buscher went back to serve and helped get the Oaks seven consecutive points, with Moea Kekauoha getting a pair of blocks during the run. Maggie McDonald sealed it with a couple of kills to give the Oaks a 25-18 win.

Three points was again the largest deficit either team faced during the entire fourth set, which again included some bonus volleyball. Buscher again provided back-to-back kills late in the fourth to give the Oaks a 20-17 lead, getting closer to forcing a fifth set. The Warriors came back to tie it at 23-23, and held a 26-25, nearing a four-set victory. Thanks to some errors from the Life Pacific side, the Oaks took the final three points and won 28-26, forcing a decisive fifth set. The Oaks had the early momentum in this final set, leading 7-3 after a kill from Kekauoha and consecutive aces from Buscher. Life Pacific called a timeout and the entire dynamic of the set changed. With the Oaks leading 11-10, the Warriors took five of the final six points to narrowly take down the unbeaten Oaks 15-12.

Menlo vs. University of Antelope Valley (25-13, 26-24, 25-22)

The Oaks came out ready to avenge their first loss of the season, and they sure looked sharp in the first set against the Pioneers. Menlo opened with an 11-2 lead against the Pioneers, thanks in large part to Bailey Gamez. The senior provided a kill and two service aces over that impressive opening run, while Emily Sunada also contributed with two kills of her own. That was more than enough of a cushion for Menlo, as they never saw their lead get smaller than eight points over the entire set. Another Gamez ace in the final points helped set up a four-point run to close out the opening set 25-13.

The Pioneers cleaned up a lot of their mistakes in the second set, and actually held the slight advantage for nearly the entire second set. In yet another set that never saw a team lead by a larger margin than three points, Gamez was playing a large role again, getting three kills by the midway point of the set. It was not enough to stop the Pioneers from nearly squeaking out a win, as they were one point away with a 24-21 lead. Kenzie Carpenter denied the Pioneers a victory with a kill, and then Maggie McDonald did the same. Following an attack error on the Pioneers that tied it up, Sunada recorded a kill with some help from Jaden Scott on the set to put the Oaks up by one, and another attack error iced it, with the Oaks winning 26-24.

Four points was the largest lead in the third and eventually the final set, so you could say it opened up a little bit compared to the second set. Regardless, both teams played some good volleyball again, but the Oaks had a little more command this time around. After falling behind 6-3, Sunada continued her strong match by blasting back-to-back kills to give the Oaks some much needed momentum. After flip-flopping points, a kills from Scott and Carpenter helped give the Oaks some breathing room in the form of a 14-11 lead. Sierra Buscher went back-to-back on the kill front to maintain the three-point lead at 20-17, and the Oaks eventually pushed it to 23-19. The Pioneers went on a little run to make it 23-22 and threaten bonus volleyball, but a Buscher kill and an attack error on a Lucyanna Herrera serve ended it at 25-22 and gave the Oaks the clean sweep.

After four games in two days, the Oaks can surely use a break and that is exactly what they shall receive. Menlo does not see its next game action until a Wednesday, August 23^rd match at UC Merced, slated to begin at 7:00 PM. The Oaks will follow that up with their home opener exactly one week later, also against the Bobcats.

Menlo College Women’s Volleyball sweeps Day One of William Jessup Invitational

Photo, Recap Credit: Menlo College

ROCKLIN, Calif. – The 2017 season got off to about as good of a start as possible for Menlo College Women's Volleyball. Led by new Head Coach Denise Sheldon, the Oaks opened up the campaign in Rocklin, the home of the William Jessup Warriors, who were hosting the William Jessup Invitational. The two-day event will see the Oaks play four matches to begin their season, with the first two against Bethel College and St. Katherine College. Menlo seemed in midseason form, taking both matches in straight sets to open up the season a perfect 2-0.

Menlo vs. Bethel College (25-17, 25-16, 25-21). 

The Oaks began their season in convincing fashion, taking down the Pilots in straight sets to earn their first victory of 2017. The opening set was well-played on both sides, and became more competitive the deeper the match went. Bethel College actually opened the first set with a 10-8 lead, but Sierra Buscher led a run that put the Oaks in front. Menlo took the next six points, thanks in large part to four-consecutive kills from Buscher that swung momentum completely over to the Oaks side. A Kenzie Carpenter kill capped off the rally and put the Oaks up 14-10. The Pilots held their own to keep the score close going down to the wire, with the Oaks holding on to a 17-16 lead late in the set. Menlo proceeded to take eight of the final nine points, with two more kills from Buscher, and the final two points being earned on service aces from Carpenter.

The lead was more steady in the second set, where Menlo never trailed by more than one point in the early stages. A pair of kills by Bailey Gamez and Moea Kekauoha helped give the Oaks a 12-8 lead at the midway point. Maggie McDonald chipped in with three kills of her own to extend the lead to five points, at 18-13. Another kill from Buscher put a bow on the second set at 25-16, one of 11 kills from Buscher in the opening match.

The Oaks never trailed in the third set, and with Monica Hruby on the serve pulled out in front to a 6-0 advantage. Five of the points were earned via attack errors from the Pilots, but the kills started rolling in later in the set. McDonald continued to play well in the opener with the first two kills of the set for Menlo. Bethel College just would not go away in the third set, desperately trying to force a fourth set. After taking five of six points late in the set to make it a 20-18 Menlo lead, the another McDonald kill led both teams into a timeout that was opportunistic for the Oaks. Jade Rockwood was back to serve and after an attack error got the Oaks a 22-18 lead, Rockwood fired off back-to-back aces to put the Oaks one point away from a sweep. It would eventually come in the form of a kill from Emily Sunada, and the Oaks earned the 25-21 win.
 
Menlo vs. St. Katherine College (25-11, 25-15, 25-22)

After a break in between sets, the Oaks came out fresh against a St. Katherine squad that had already played two matches on the afternoon. Despite the opening set being close for the first thirteen points (St. Katherine led 7-6), the Oaks rattled off a run for the ages. Menlo tallied a whopping 16 of the next 17 points, with the lone St. Katherine point coming on a defensive mistake. Emily Sunada and Sierra Buscher were the ones serving for the Oaks during this impressive run, with the two combining for six service aces. A couple of late kills from Moea Kekauoha and newcomer Jaden Scott iced the first set at 25-11.

The Oaks again could not pull ahead early against St. Katherine in set two, knotted up in a battle that saw the two sides trade points en route to an 11-11 tie. This is again when the Oaks would pull ahead and take command of the set, led by some killer serving from Jade Rockwood. She was back to serve when the Oaks scored six consecutive points, forcing St. Katherine to make a bevy of substitutions. Lucyanna Herrera got in on the action as well, tallying a pair of service aces, and suddenly the Oaks were up 21-12 before a timeout. Kills from Maggie McDonald and Kenzie Carpenter sealed the deal in the set, with a 25-15 win.

St. Katherine was oh so close to pulling away with a victory in the third set, but the Oaks impressed in come-from-behind fashion. Menlo fell down by as many as seven points early, trailing 10-3, and then by as many as eight points late in the match, down 20-12. Monica Hruby went back to serve to try and get some momentum back on Menlo's side and did just that by scoring four straight points. St. Katherine still led 22-18 and just needed a few more points to force a fourth set. Alas, Menlo fired off the final seven points of the set and won 25-22, thanks to the serves of Kekauoha and a pair of big kills from Buscher.

The Oaks will take their unbeaten mark into Day Two of the William Jessup Invitational, with two more matches on the line. Menlo will take on Life Pacific College at 11:00 AM, and then after a short break they will play University of Antelope Valley at 3:00 PM.

Lions Fall in Pair of Five-Set Matches at Summer Slam

Photo, Recap Credit: Vanguard

FULLERTON, Calif. – The 2017 Vanguard/Hope Summer Slam kicked off Wednesday and the Lions played their only two road games of a five game slate in the tournament. After Biola University's long standing tradition was handed off due to their transition to NCAA Division II, the Lions (1-2) faced their first road action of the year. First, the Blue and Gold matched up against Morningside (RV) (2-0) and later faced #25 College of Idaho (2-0) in the nightcap. Both matches went to the fifth set before Vanguard was defeated. The score from the Morningside game ran (25-14,21-25,21-25,25-21,15-9) while the match against the Yotes was (25-16,20-25,22-25,25-20,15-7).

Morningside (RV) 3, Vanguard 2

Juanae Johnson (SR/Santa Monica, CA) was the kill leader for the match with 17 and was one of four Lions to hit double digit successful attacks. Kamelah Noel (SO/Portland, OR) ended with 12, Shaylen Larson-Piper (JR/Elizabeth, CO) snagged 11, and Jene Lee (SR/San Dimas, CA) finished with 10. Johnson and Noel combined for 95 total attacks. Running a 5-1 offensive system, Kirstin Trabert (SO/Corona, CA) dished out 50 assists, while the counterparts for Morningside added 31 and 23 each in a 6-2 offensive system. Vanguard ended with 5.5 blocks, 1.5 more than the opposition. Each squad recorded a lone solo block. Rebecca Lowden (JR/Glendora, CA) led the match with 27 digs, but Trabert, Noel, and Linsey Ng all had 10 or more digs on the day.

College of Idaho 3, Vanguard 2

The contest was tightly contested, but the Yotes walked off the court in victory. COI held a 13-5 edge in services aces while the Lions recorded six less service errors to a net positive of two points for College of Idaho. Noel led the Pride with 17 kills in the second contest of the day while Taylor Jackson (SR/Las Vegas, NV) was slotted second with 11 kills and Johnson finished right at 10. Noel had the highest hitting percentage for the squad with .400 (outside of setter Trabert going 2-2). Game two saw a shift in philosophy as Trabert tossed out 25 assists while Kylie Garrett (FR/Ladera Ranch, CA) saw her first action of the year and handed out 22 helpers. The dig count was more even as Lowden grabbed 18 and Ng was just behind with 15. The teams were one dig off each other (COI 60, VU 59). Both teams ended with 11.0 blocks with only one solo block coming between the 43 total chances.

Next Match: Today, August 17^th at 10:00 a.m. against Northwestern University and 2:00 p.m. against Southern Oregon University.

’Cats put win streak on the line Tuesday against Sonoma State

By Rory Miller - Assistant Sports Information Director (rtmiller@csuchico.edu)
Things couldn't be better for the Chico State volleyball team. The Wildcats have played nearly perfect ball at home – winning six in a row while losing just a single set – and have dropped just one decision in the past month to surge to the top of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) North Division standings. Tuesday the 'Cats look to keep winning away from the friendly confines of Acker Gym, as they travel to Rohnert Park to face two-time defending conference champion Sonoma State in the opener of a four match, eight day road swing. The action begins at 7 p.m. at the Wolves' Den.

Fans can follow the action on the Internet with Live Stats via the Wildcat Athletics website. Live streaming video is also available online.

The 'Cats are 6-4 on the road this season.

Chico State enters Tuesday night's contest having won eight of the team's last nine decisions to raise its overall record to 12-4. Thanks to conference victories last week over Stanislaus State and Humboldt State, the Wildcats own a two game lead in the CCAA North Division with a 6-1 mark.

The 'Cats are also pacing the entire conference is several statistical categories. Chico State is first among the 13 CCAA teams in hitting percentage (.244), kills per set (14.05), assists per set (13.18), service aces (112) and aces per set (2.04).

The Wildcats are prominently featured in the CCAA's individual stats. Torey Thompson, who Friday became just the third setter in Chico State history to collect 4,000 career assists, leads the conference in assists per set (10.85). Olivia Mediano is fourth in the CCAA in kills (190) and kills per set (3.58) while ranking eighth in service aces (21) and seventh in aces per set (0.40).

Camryn Rocha, with 166 kills on the year, is fifth in the CCAA in kills per set (3.19). Kim Wright (119 kills, team-high 40 blocks) is tied for third among conference players with 23 service aces and is tied for fourth in aces per set (0.43).

Shannon Cotton is also tied for third with 23 aces and shares fourth place in the CCAA in aces per set (0.43). She also ranks seventh in the conference in digs per set (4.39).

Sonoma State enters Tuesday's action 6-8 on the year, but is tied for second place in the CCAA North with a 4-3 conference record. The Seawolves split their two road matches last weekend, falling to Cal State San Marcos Friday before besting UC San Diego Saturday in four sets.

Like Chico State, Sonoma has put up some impressive team numbers, ranking fourth in the CCAA in hitting percentage (.202), kills per set (12.96), assists per set (12.11) and digs per set (17.38).

The Seawolves are led by middle blocker Rachel Andrews. The six-foot senior has a team-high 133 kills and ranks second in the CCAA in hitting percentage (.377) and tied for fifth in the conference with 50 blocks on the season.

Junior middle blocker Kelsey McIntire has racked up 113 kills and 22 blocks, while junior setter Calan Seitz has produced 101 kills and 17 blocks for the Seawolves.

Sonoma State has won the last five meetings with Chico State and lead the all-time series 39-27. The Wildcats have not won a match at the Wolves' Den since October 3, 2009.

Rebecca Slattery collects 1,000th Career Kill

Photo by: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

WHITTIER, Calif. – Senior outside hitter Rebecca Slattery (Los Altos, Calif.) achieved a big milestone Saturday during a match-up against Claremont-M-S.

Slattery reached the 1,000 kill plateau for her career after posting 14 kills on 39 attempts for a .308 hitting percentage.  She has proven to be one of the most lethal outside hitters in the conference and in all of Division III.

This season she has 177 kills thus far and has totaled 1,003 for her career.  She is currently No. 5 in single season kills with 362, which she posted last season in 2015.

Penguins complete comeback at ART U in match for the ages

Recap BY: DU's Brandon Davis
SAN FRANCISCO — The Dominican University of California women's volleyball team won in epic fashion on Monday night in historic Kezar Pavilion, stealing a 3-2 (17-25, 25-20, 31-33, 25-16, 15-13) victory from rival Academy of Art.

The storylines for the Penguins (10-6/6-2 PacWest) read like a veritable Choose Your Own Adventure book: earlier in the day libero Amanda Lee was named PacWest Libero of the Week for Sept. 26 to Oct. 2, then the Penguins got off to another painfully slow start, rallied back to even the match, then rallied back from six points down in set three only to lose the team's longest set in Division II history, then held the Urban Knights (4-10/2-3 PacWest) to -.026 hitting in set four, won the match thanks to a pair of ART U errors, and with the win passed both the team's overall and conference win total from last season.

Dominican trailed 5-0 from the start and the gap only widended as Dominican fell behind 20-10 and went on to drop the first set. The Penguins got some momentum going in set two thanks to an 8-3 lead that caused ART U to call timeout. The break helped momentarily but the Penguins grew the lead to 20-13. Four of Dominican's next five points came on opponent errors, which time and time again proved costly for the Urban Knights.

Set three epitomized the fight of both teams in a marathon set. The Urban Knights built a 21-14 lead but a 7-0 run by the Penguins evened thet set at 21-21. Ema Causevic's kill gave the Urban Knights the first set point of the frame but her hitting error on the next play evened things at 24-24. In total, there were nine set points between the two teams before, tied 31-31, the Urban Knights broke the seal with another Causevic kill and a Penguins attack error. The 64-point set was the longest in program history in the Division II era for the Penguins, whose longest set up to that point was a 31-29 set in favor of the Penguins over NDNU in 2014.

ART U's momentum spilled over into set four, where the Urban Knights led 3-0 early. A Lee service ace whittled the lead to 4-3, then the Penguins rattled off an 8-1 run for a 10-5 lead. A block from Kate Even andAimee Steinwand built the lead to 20-10 and Dominican fended off a late Urban Knights run to force a fifth set.

The two teams traded the first nine points of the deciding set before ART U took a 6-4 lead on a Penguins attack error. The Penguins evened the set right back up though and the two teams traded points until Dominican took a 13-11 lead on a Steinwand kill down the right side. Back-to-back Bailey Soolsma kills evened the set at 13-13 and forced the Penguins to call timeout. Kabrina Speakman served into the net, setting up Dominican match point, and a Causevic attack error gave the Penguins the win.

Three Penguins reached double-digit kills, led by 14 from Madeline Powelson. Steinwand added 13 andBrittany Latigue tallied 11. Lee was one of three Penguins in double digit digs and led all players with 27. Steinwand added 21 for her 11th double-double and Powelson made it a double-double with 20 digs.Hannah Smith dished out 33 assists and Rebecca Schira added 11 in the win.

ART U was led by 23 kills from Brum. Elisaia added 14 and Causevic had 12 kills. Speakman had 25 digs.

Winners of six of their last eight matches, the Penguins will look to make it four in a row on Saturday at 3 p.m. at Holy Names (1-14/0-7 PacWest). Live stats and video will be provided by the Hawks and will be available at dominicanathletics.com/live.

Knights Drop 3-2 Heartbreaker To Penguins

SAN FRANCISCO – In a rematch of the team's Sept. 17 matchup, Academy of Art and Dominican took the volleyball court once more Tuesday, but this time inside Kezar Pavilion. The contest went deep into the night as five sets were needed to determine a victor and, when all was said and done, the Penguins just barely came out on top 3-2 (17-25, 25-20, 31-33, 25-16, 15-13). Senior outside hitter Melissa Brum led all players with a season-high 23 kills and freshman setter Lilika Teu posted a career-high of 56 assists, but Dominican shifted the momentum in the fourth set and benefited from a crucial two-point swing in the final frame.

Starting the opening set 5-0 with kills from three different Urban Knights, ART U showed it was sharp right away. An eight-point advantage was held much of the way as redshirt sophomore middle blocker Safua Elisaia helped keep the offense rolling. A kill by redshirt freshman outside hitter Ema Causevic earned Academy of Art the first set 25-17, but the Penguins came right back to gain a 9-4 lead in the second set. A 5-1 ART U push came late in the frame, however, a pair of Knights attack errors put Dominican over the top 25-20.

A historic third set began with a 9-4 lead for Academy of Art highlighted by Brum's four kills as well

Lions Cruise Past Oaks

Recap, photo courtesy of Vanguard.

ATHERTON, Calif. – Riding high from the dominance less than a day before in the decisive fifth set, the Lions (7-12, 4-2) sprang out to a hot 25-10 first set win over Menlo College (9-11, 1-5) before winning in straight sets. Vanguard won 25-22 and 25-21 in the final two sets thanks to 29 combined kills. The Blue and Gold earned a .323 hitting percentage for the match nearly double the Oaks' .125% rate.

"Today we came together, focused in, and did our jobs well," remarked Rory McCloy(SR/Colorado Springs, CO). "We knew what we had to do in order to be successful and we accomplished that."

Juanae Johnson (JR/Santa Monica, CA) brought the hammer recording 15 kills for a .367 kill percentage; Shaylen Larson-Piper (SO/Elizabeth, CO) and Hailey Gordon (SO/San Diego, CA) rode shot gun as they each tallied seven kills on 15 attempts each. Kelly Dalrymple(SR/Poway, CA) recorded 22 of the teams 39 assists. In the quick three set match, Rebecca Lowden (SO/Glendora, CA) dug 16 of the Oaks' attempts. Chelsea Taylor (FR/Murrieta, CA) scored the lone solo block for VU while Gordon had a team high five block assists.

"We played very well today and it feels great to get two road wins," head coach Eryn Lejareported. "It was good to see them elevate their level of play after last night; another great performance by Juanae and Becca."

Next Match: Tuesday, October 4th at Biola University at 7:00 p.m.

-GOLD PRIDE-

Academy of Art University Volleyball Stuns Stanislaus In 3-2 Comeback

TURLOCK, Calif. – Facing a 2-0 deficit, Academy of Art University volleyball refused to give up and instead pulled off an incredible 3-2 victory (20-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-18, 15-13) inside Fitzpatrick Arena on Tuesday night. The Urban Knights' conclusion to non-conference play saw a major shift occur late in the third set as the team rallied behind a breakout performance from redshirt freshman Ema Causevic in the triumph.

"We didn't let the 2-0 deficit get us down," said Causevic. "We came back positive and ready to start strong from the beginning. Serving and blocking really helped us to put pressure on them and slow the ball down. Also our passing got better and allowed our setter to distribute the ball perfectly around the court."

The opening set saw separation when the Warriors used a 5-0 run to get ahead 7-14, but that gap was

Five Set Frustration

Recap, photo courtesy Biola

Biola suffers its first GSAC loss of the season as The Master's University upsets the Eagles in five.

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. --- Sometimes things are just not meant to go your way. That's exactly what No. 13 Biola Volleyball experienced on Tuesday night as it began its week on the road with a five-set loss at The Master's University (20-25, 25-19, 25-23, 18-25, 14-16).

The Eagles took a substantial lead in set one before watching it fall by the wayside as the Mustangs put seven consecutive points on the board late in the set to go from being down by three to up by four and just two points away from winning the set.

In front of a sizable home crowd TMU was able to win two of the final three points of the set and complete the comeback, which would prove pivotal, to win the set 25-20.

The Eagles worked around some offensive inconsistencies to take the second set, 25-19. The difference in that set was the early play of Ally Forsberg in the middle and Olivia Sorensen back outside (four kills and a block combined). Also, the Mustangs committed three setting errors, which awarded BU some free points.

Biola also managed to take the third set to earn a 2-1 advantage in the match and set itself up well to earn its fifth Golden State Athletic Conference win in as many tries. The Eagles only won the third set by two points, and they had to come from behind to do it, which was an early indicator that this match was going to go down to the wire.

The Master's had a stretch where they won 10 of 13 points in the middle of set four, which allowed them to earn a 25-18 set win and force the incredible fifth set.

Biola was the first team to reach a match point when it claimed a 14-13 advantage in the deciding frame. It was a classic Hannah van Warmerdam bullet that silenced Bross Court and had the Eagles as close to victory as they've been all night.

That kill was Biola's third point in a row as it finally overcame a TMU lead that had the fifth set in doubt throughout. Unfortunately, that streak came to an end and was replaced by a three-point streak for the host school that ultimately ended the match in their favor at 16-14.

It was a service ace that did the Eagles in. Biola suffered nine service errors on the night, which gave TMU a rare two-ace advantage in that category. The Eagles came into play with 113 aces to its opponents' 88.

Biola's biggest standouts on the stat sheer were Hannah van Warmerdam (14 kills), Brinley Beresford (30 assists) and Tess Van Grouw (22 digs). Also of note, Sierra Bauder had 10 kills, two blocks and hit .208 in her first game since Sept. 9.

The loss drops Biola to 13-6 (4-1 GSAC) and helps the Mustangs move into a tie in the GSAC standings with an overall mark of 11-5 (4-1 GSAC). Biola is back at it on Saturday when it goes toe-to-toe with No. 3 Westmont (16-0, 5-0 GSAC).

U.S. Women Remain Undefeated in Win over Italy

By Bill Kauffman (bill.kauffman@usav.org)

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – The U.S. Olympic Women’s Volleyball Team, ranked No. 1 the world, was energized by its bench play Friday after as it defeated Italy 25-22, 25-22, 23-25, 25-20 during the Olympic Games Pool B being staged at Maracanazinho Arena in Rio de Janeiero, Brazil.

The Americans, now 4-0 in Pool B with 11 points and in first place, conclude pool play against the world’s No. 3 China on Sunday at 4:05 p.m. ET. Team USA, though already qualified for the Aug. 16 quarterfinals following its victory over Serbia on Wednesday, is aiming to grab the top seed from Pool B.

Earlier today China lost to Serbia 25-19, 25-19, 25-22 to fall to 2-2 with seven points. Serbia is now in second place with a 3-1 record and nine points. Serbia challenges fourth-place Netherlands on the final day of pool play prior to the USA’s match against China. A Team USA win will secure the top spot in the Pool B heading into the quarterfinals. However, an American loss to China means Serbia can slip into the top seed with a win over Netherlands despite having lost to the U.S. earlier this week.

The top four teams from the two six-team pools advance to the quarterfinals with the top seeds

Errors Costly at Colorado

BOULDER, Colo. – Despite a career-high tying 22 kills from freshman Hayley Hodson, the sixth-ranked Stanford women’s volleyball team fell in four set at Colorado (23-25, 25-27, 25-23, 21-25), Sunday, at the Coors Events Center in Boulder, Colorado. The Cardinal drops to 11-5 overall and to 5-3 in the Pac-12, while the Buffaloes move to 12-8 and 4-4 in the conference.

Hodson hit .326 to lead the Cardinal while also recording eight digs and five blocks. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Merete Lutz added 15 kills on .323 hitting and four blocks. Senior outside hitter Brittany Howard was the third Cardinal with double-digit kills, finishing with 13.

Senior setter Madi Bugg directed the offense with 53 assists to go with seven digs and two kills. Redshirt sophomore Ivana Vanjak tallied a team-best seven blocks, while senior Jordan Burgess finished with a career high six blocks. Freshman libero Halland McKenna tied for a match-high with 16 digs.

Colorado out hit Stanford .260 to .245 and held a 60 to 44 advantage in the dig column. Both teams recorded 12.0 blocks, but the Cardinal was hurt by 12 service errors.

The Buffaloes were led by Gabby Simpson’s 25 kills and 10 digs. Senior Alexis Austin added 17 kills, 12 digs and six blocks for Colorado.

Stanford returns to The Farm next week to begin a four-match homestand against the Washington and Arizona schools. First up, the Cardinal face No. 4 Washington on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. PT on the Pac-12 Networks.

Cardinal Fends Off ‘Cats

TUCSON, Ariz. – Down 2-1, the eighth-ranked Stanford women’s volleyball team fought back to defeat No. 14 Arizona (15-25, 25-15, 21-25, 25-23, 17-15, Wednesday, at the McKale Center in Tucson, Arizona. The Cardinal improves to 8-3 overall and to 2-1 in the Pac-12, while the Wildcats drop to 11-4 and 1-2 in conference.

Stanford out hit Arizona .211 to .172 in the match and posted a season high 18.0 team blocks. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Ivana Vanjak paced the squad with nine blocks.

Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Merete Lutz registered a career high 20 kills on a .450 attack