Utah Volleyball Earns The Sweep Over Stanford Following 3-1 Victory
There aren't many teams in the country who can throw out three all-Americans on one side of the court at a time.
Fortunately for Utah, they are one of the rare teams that has numerous players of taking over and winning a match.
With all-American Kenzie Koerber already out and fellow all-American Dani Drews struggling in offensive efficiency, the Utes were able to turn all-American Saige Ka'aha'aina-Torres.
Finishing with match-highs of 44 assists and 18 digs, Ka'aha'aina-Torres helped Utah (10-2) overcome an opening-set loss to take down Stanford 3-1 (16-25, 25-17, 25-20, 25-19) on Sunday afternoon. Not only did the win secure the Utes regular season sweep over the Cardinal (1-5), it helped them stay atop the Pac-12 standings.
Drews did finish with a match-high 19 kills but struggled with consistency, which is what makes her among the best in the nation. She hit just .105, but did seven digs, two blocks and two service aces.
With Koerber still out for undisclosed reasons, Phoebe Grace stepped up in her absence and delivered her best performance of the season. She finished with 10 kills and a match-high .368 hitting percentage.
Madelyn Robinson, Megan Yett and Kennedi Evans all had nine, eight and seven kills respectively, while Robinson and Yett added 20 digs apiece and Evans chipped in a team-high six blocks.
Megan Yett (14), Phoebe Grace (19) and Madelyn Robinson (13), celebrate a point during Utah's 3-1 victory over Stanford on Sunday, February 28 at the Jon M. Huntsman Center — Courtesy of Utah Athletics
The first set belonged to Stanford as the Cardinal looked like the team everyone thought they'd be at the beginning of the season.
A slow start by Utah with multiple hitting errors allowed Stanford to thrive at the net and take the opener 25-16 in a contest that wasn't as close as the score indicated.
But the Utes responded like a top-10 team does.
Utah found its rhythm early and took an 11-6 lead before Stanford responded and cut the deficit to two. The Utes found themselves leading 18-14 before embarking on a 6-0 run that eventually led to a 25-17 win.
Keeping the momentum, Utah built another big lead in the third set and despite another mini Cardinal run, were able to hang on for the win and a 2-1 lead.
The fourth set turned out identical to the second and third sets, with the Utes building a huge lead and holding off a mini Stanford run before getting the victory and the season sweep.
Utah will now turn its attention to UCLA in what's expected to be a monster showdown for conference supremacy. The Utes and Bruins will meet on Friday and Sunday at Pauley Pavilion, with first serve set for 3 p.m. and 1 p.m. respectively.
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