SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Volleyball dropped a tight three-set match to eighth-ranked Stanford (22-25, 22-25, 20-25) on Sunday night at the Jon M. Huntsman Center to close out the weekend of play.
The Utes hit a respectable .250 hitting percentage for the match, but could not contain the Cardinal offense as the visiting team hit a .327 clip. The Ute defense was an even match for the top-10 Stanford team as both squads posted 38 digs and eight blocks.
Utah opened the match with little separation during the first set as the largest lead from either team was just two points until Stanford managed to push a lead out to 18-15. Utah received a pair of kills from Amelia Van Der Werff, a kill from Madelyn Robinson and a big block from the duo of Emily Smith and Allie Olsen to outscore Stanford 4-1 and tie the frame 19-all. Despite having the momentum, the Cardinal used a 5-1 run to earn set point, 24-20. Consecutive points for Utah forced a Stanford timeout, but Stanford’s Kendall Kipp ended the set 25-22.
The second set nearly mirrored the first set as the two teams played another tightly contested frame. Tied 14-14, Stanford gained separation from Utah with a 3-0 run, however, a Jardine kill and block immediately after trimmed the lead back to one point. Stanford and Utah scored in pairs of points for the next six rallies, eventually causing Utah to call timeout trailing 21-18.
Out of the break, KJ Burgess earned the sideout for the Utes. From…
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