Arizona Volleyball falls to Stanford in Conference Play

Arizona Volleyball (12-2, 1-1) loses in a tough, conference match-up versus the No. 2 ranked Stanford Cardinal in Palo Alto.

It was a week of mixed results for the Arizona Volleyball team. Days after sweeping rival ASU inside McKale, the Wildcats had a tall task in front of them versus No. 2 Stanford on Sunday.

Entering the match, the Cardinal were 9-1, essentially running through everyone, including a number of highly ranked teams. Perhaps this would be the Wildcats’ chance to knock off Stanford.

Arizona Wildcats

The task was daunting, but perhaps with how well Arizona had been playing, who knows what could happen?

Well, from the start, it was clear it was going to be a battle. Stanford came out charged, but Arizona was neck and neck in the first set for at least a little while. Then the Cardinal started to pull away, securing a 17-9 lead.

Despite Arizona’s best attempts to claw back into this one, Stanford ended up winning the first set by a 25-17 final.

The second set would be a bit more hotly contested. Climbing out to a nice lead, it looked like this game was in hand comfortably for Arizona, leading 23-18. However, Stanford would not go quietly, knotting this one at 24-24.

Need to win by two, the Wildcats would finally pull away in this one, winning the second set 27-25 and evening the match at 1-1 (*note this was the first time an unranked team took a set from Stanford since Nov. 11, 2017).

Heading into the third set, Arizona would carry a bit of that momentum, going tit-for-tat with Stanford through the early parts of the set. Unfortunately, Stanford’s athleticism would prove too much, as they began to pull away midway through the set, ultimately winning by a 25-20.

Desperately needing a win to keep the match alive, the Wildcats would fight valiantly in this one. Arizona would climb out to a 15-12 lead, but that’s when Stanford would begin to swing the momentum their way, coming away with the 25-21 set victory and 3-1 match victory.

Kendra Dahlke led the Wildcats in kills with 15 and Paige Whipple added 10 of her own. Setter Julia Patterson had 37 assists for the match.

Despite the great effort by the Wildcats, they would fall in Palo Alto to a great team that is not easy to beat, especially on the road. With the loss, Arizona falls to 12-2 (1-1) and will return to action next weekend in Oregon, where they will take on Oregon on Friday, and Oregon State on Sunday.

At Zona Zealots, we would like to congratulate the volleyball team on the valiant effort and wish them the best as they try to get back on track next week! Bear Down, Arizona!