It was a career night on Wednesday for fifth-year senior opposite Merete Lutz. Lutz, the only senior on a team filled with young talent, is known for being a consistent performer, earning All-Pac-12 Conference honors in each of her previous seasons. In her fourth and final year as a Cardinal, Lutz has begun to carve her place in Stanford women’s volleyball history. In the second set of second-ranked Stanford’s (10-2, 3-0 Pac-12) 25-12, 25-18, 26-24 home sweep of Arizona State (10-5, 0-3), Lutz claimed her 1,000 career kill, becoming just the 18th Stanford player since 1986 to reach that mark.

Ever the focused competitor, Lutz seemed unaware at first of her milestone kill, rotating off the court to speak with head coach Kevin Hambly before briefly cheering with her teammates. The fifth-year senior’s record-breaking night was not over, however, as she also reached Stanford’s all-time top ten with her 425th career block.

After a closely contested five-set victory against Colorado last Sunday, the Cardinal came out of the gate strong against the Sun Devils. Hitting .432 to Arizona State’s .227 on the night, Stanford claimed an easy first and second set. Behind sophomore outside hitter Kathryn Plummer’s 13 kills, the Cardinal out-powered the Sun Devils for much of the night. Arizona State put more pressure on the Stanford defense in the third set, tying the frame 24-24 and threatening to extend the match, but junior middle blocker Tami Alade’s six blocks and freshman outside hitter Meghan McClure’s five digs kept the Sun Devils at bay. Back-to-back kills McClure and Plummer sealed the victory, Stanford’s fifth straight and seventh straight at home.

The Cardinal will play at home once more this week before an extended streak of road matches. On Friday, Stanford looks to continue its win streak against Pac-12 Conference opponent Arizona. The game will begin at 7 p.m.

Contact Laura Anderson at lauraand ‘at’ stanford.edu.