STANFORD, Calif. – No. 5 Stanford (14-3, 6-2 ACC) travels to rival California (10-10, 2-6 ACC) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. before hosting the Bears on Friday at 7 p.m. in Maples Pavilion. Both matches will be streamed on ACCNX.
THE SERIES AGAINST THE GOLDEN BEARS: Stanford is 84-12 all-time against Cal. The Cardinal has won seven straight against the Golden Bears, including both meetings in 2023. Cal’s most recent win came on Feb. 12, 2021 – a five-set victory in Berkeley.
REUNION HOMECOMING: On Friday, Stanford welcomes back members of its 1994 and 2004 national championship teams for its alumni night. Stanford battled UCLA, the only team that it had fallen to in 1994, for the NCAA title in Austin, Texas, defeating the Bruins for its second national championship in three years. The Cardinal finished with a 32-1 record and its third Pac-10 title. The 2004 team won an unprecedented sixth national title for the Cardinal, sweeping Minnesota in Long Beach.
HOME SWEET HOME: In eight seasons under Kevin Hambly, Stanford is 91-12 at Maples Pavilion, including 18-2 in the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinal won 32 in a row at home to begin Hambly’s tenure at Stanford.
LAST TIME OUT: The Cardinal is coming off a split on the road last week, sweeping No. 12 SMU on Wednesday before falling in straight sets at No. 1 Pitt on Sunday. Stanford finished off the Mustangs in a marathon third set, 35-33 – the longest of the season for the Cardinal. Outside hitter Elia Rubin led the team with 18 kills on .368 hitting, including the 1,000th of her career on Wednesday.
COACHES’ PICK: In its inaugural ACC season, Stanford was picked to finish second by the league’s coaches. The Cardinal captured three first-place votes and placed four on the Preseason All-ACC squad – middle blocker Sami Francis, setter Kami Miner, libero Elena Oglivie and outside hitter Elia Rubin.
STACKED SCHEDULE: Stanford is slated to play 12 matches against teams ranked in the AVCA Preseason Poll, including seven against top-10 opponents. The Cardinal faced No. 1 Texas (W, 3-0), No. 2 Nebraska (L, 3-0), No. 3 Wisconsin (W, 3-1), No. 9 Kentucky (W, 3-1), No. 18 Minnesota (W, 3-2) and No. 24 Marquette (W, 3-0) in the nonconference. Stanford will meet No. 4 Pittsburgh (Oct. 20), No. 6 Louisville (Sept. 29 & Nov. 30), No. 14 Georgia Tech (Nov. 9 & Nov. 27) and No. 20 Florida State (Nov. 3) in ACC play.
MILESTONE UNLOCKED: Kami Miner recorded her 4,000th career assist on Sept. 2 in a four-set win over No. 6…
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