The No. 5 Stanford men’s volleyball team took a stand this weekend and crushed No. 3 UCLA (30-24, 30-23, 30-24) and defending NCAA champion No. 11 UC-Irvine (30-25, 21-30, 30-28, 30-26). The wins extend the Cardinal’s win streak at home to four games.
“Our confidence is back after losing to Santa Barbara and Northridge. We were so close in those two matches,” said sophomore outsider hitter Brad Lawson. “To come back and beat UCLA and UC-Irvine shows that we are getting back on track to our goal [of] being there in the end–of winning a national championship.”
Lawson highlighted the Cardinal’s (7-3, 6-3 MPSF) weekend with 37 kills, becoming the team’s new offensive leader in the process. Senior opposite hitter Evan Romero chipped in with 27 kills on the weekend. His classmate, setter Kawika Shoji, registered 96 assists, with a stellar 58 against UC-Irvine.
The Card’s Friday night sweep showcased its ability to stay ahead of the competition and truly finish. The first set of the night started off slow for Stanford as it fell behind early to the Bruins (7-6, 6-4) by a score of 6-4. But kills from Lawson, Romero and sophomore middle blocker Gus Ellis, followed by UCLA hitting errors, gave Stanford an edge. While the set continued to be a back and forth battle, Stanford’s sophomore libero Erik Shoji was able to hold down the defense against Bruin powerhouse Jack Polales. At 16-16, the Card was cutting it close, but an Ellis block put Stanford up again. After a combination of service errors and hitting errors, the Bruins approached defeat. A Nick Vogel service error concluded the set at 30-24 and gave Stanford the 1-0 advantage.
With momentum from the first set, the Card came out swinging in the second. Returning from injury, junior outside hitter Spencer McLachlin fired up the offense with a kill from Ellis. Teammates Lawson, Romero and senior middle blocker Garrett Werner all kept the drive going at 10-7 while trying to hold off Polales. After two UCLA kills, Stanford took time to regain focus and to slow the Bruins down. It proved effective, as UCLA came out making errors, forcing a Bruin timeout at 20-14. Lawson and Werner held the lead and Romero finished it off at 30-23.
“It was important getting Spencer [McLachlin] back. He’s a great player–a steady passer and a great hitter,” Lawson said.
Looking for a comeback, UCLA kicked off the set with a strong attack and held the lead until McLachlin tied it up 11-11. The Card would continue to fight for a lead, however, and Kawika Shoji’s surprise back-to-back kills from Lawson set the team back on track at 18-16. The pair switched it up on the next one with Lawson earning the point. While the Bruins offense executed a few crucial kills, Lawson ended the set at 30-24 for the match victory.
After a 3-0 sweep, the Card moved on to the defending champions on Saturday for a clutch win.
A strong start to set one, a four-point run and kills from Werner, McLachlin, Lawson and Shoji positioned Stanford with a 13-7 lead. Unable to gain the lead, the Anteaters (7-8, 3-7) failed to respond to Stanford’s offense. UC-Irvine’s Carson Clark ran the offense; however, he was no match for the Card’s spread offense that hit from all directions. With strong hitters on all sides, the Anteaters yielded to Ellis as he closed the set at 30-25 for the Card.
The second set displayed a changed Stanford team–one that was inconsistent, but still able to battle it out. Irvine’s Clark, Jordan DuFault and Cory Yoder pounded in kill after kill, and Stanford made defensive errors. Through the struggle, Ellis and Lawson were able to connect with the ball and pull through necessary kills to keep them in the game. However, a slight lack of focus on the Card’s part benefited the Anteaters as an Austin D’Amore kill finished it off at 30-21 for UCI.
“Obviously UC-Irvine is a great team. They’re not just going to give a game to you,” Lawson said. “[There was] a little loss of focus and energy. But in the third set we got it back.”
The Cardinal regrouped after its first lost set of the weekend and came out reenergized. Despite falling behind early, Stanford tied the match 14 times before finally taking the lead after 22-22. McLachlin and Romero helped get the Card to 26-24 and an Irvine attack error, combined with three Lawson kills, ended the third set, 30-28.
The fourth set took Irvine by surprise as Romero targeted the Anteaters with powerful serves for four aces and the 4-0 lead. The Card capitalized on the momentum and jumped to a 10-5 lead when Lawson knocked in another kill. While Irvine came within two multiple times, it was unable to stage a comeback. Romero, just as he started the match, finished the set strong with three kills in the 30-26 victory.
With the two wins, Stanford moved up in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, ranking second below Northridge. This upcoming weekend the Cardinal travels to southern California to play Pepperdine in Malibu and USC in Los Angeles.