Following a three-game road trip to open its season, top-ranked Stanford women's volleyball returned home Sunday to knock off No. 3 Texas, extending its winning streak to 36 consecutive matches.
But unlike Stanford’s first three opponents, the Cardinal required five sets (17-25, 25-18, 25-11, 21-25, 15-12) to outlast the Longhorns.
Two-time player of the year Kathryn Plummer commanded the spotlight in the biggest moments of the match as she tallied nine kills in the final frame, including the game-clinching point. The senior finished with a career-high 34 kills and hit and .474 for the match.
Career-high 29th kill for @plummdawgg. In the clutch. #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/MPyBB8zX5w
— Stanford Women's Volleyball (@StanfordWVB) September 8, 2019
Texas —days removed from a sweep of No. 8 Minnesota — seemed unintimidated by the defending national champions, keeping its composure throughout Sunday’s marathon. It was a combination of that poise and swagger which helped the Longhorns grab the first set in Palo Alto, in addition to six kills and a pair of service aces from Logan Eggleston.
Eggleston and Micaya White combined for 38 kills (19 each) to pace the Longhorns’ attack.
Texas became the first team to take a set off of Stanford after the Cardinal won their first nine sets of 2019. As expected, a swift response came from the nation’s No. 1 team.
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Stanford evened the match and then pulled ahead with a dominant third set that put them on the brink of victory. A 14-point margin of victory in the third set was the Cardinal’s second-largest of the season.
With their backs to the wall in the fourth, Texas countered with its own dominant run. Trailing 7-5 at one point, the Longhorns rattled off 13 unanswered points. The Cardinal countered with a 14-6 rally of its own before a kill by Eggleston served as the equalizer.
We flew all the way out here... why not play 5!#PointTexas pic.twitter.com/Lza2yceUgr
— Texas Volleyball (@TexasVolleyball) September 8, 2019
Following the win, Stanford improves to 33-0 at home under Kevin Hambly, dropping 14 sets in that time. Additionally, the Cardinal move to 21-7 all time against Texas, extending their winning streak to five matches.
Up next, Stanford and Texas continue its challenging stretch of facing ranked opponents. The Cardinal travel to No. 6 Penn State while the Longhorns meet No. 13 Brigham Young on a neutral floor.
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No. 17 Baylor earns straight set-victory over No. 11 Marquette
For the second time in three days, Baylor has upset a team from Wisconsin.
After a four-set victory over No. 4 Wisconsin on Friday, the No. 17 Bears took down No. 11 Marquette in a sweep Sunday afternoon. Outside hitter Yossiana Pressley recorded 20 kills to lead the offensive charge, an encore performance after she put away 31 against the Badgers.
Baylor will likely experience a jump in Monday’s rankings after two wins over highly-ranked opponents. For Marquette, the loss is a setback after the program’s first-ever win over Wisconsin.
The Golden Eagles were previously 0-20 versus the Badgers before Friday's win.
