Men’s volleyball knocked out in first round of MPSFs

April 17, 2016, 10:39 p.m.

After a tremendous season, No. 5 Stanford men’s volleyball (19-6, 17-5 MPSF) fell short in the MPSF quarterfinals, losing in five sets to No. 6 UC Santa Barbara (20-9, 14-8). The Cardinal rallied from an 0-2 set deficit to force a decisive fifth set, but they were defeated 20-25, 23-25, 25-23, 25-21, 12-15 and are effectively eliminated from any further postseason play.

(RAHIM ULLAH/The Stanford Daily)
Senior setter James Shaw (above) set a new season-high with 56 assists, but not even that effort could push Stanford past UC Santa Barbara, who knocked Stanford out of the MPSF Tournament in a five-set loss. (RAHIM ULLAH/The Stanford Daily)

The Cardinal had struggled late in the season, and at first it appeared that mistakes and lack of cohesion would send them home early. The Gauchos jumped out to an easy 2-0 lead in the match with Stanford struggling to keep up. In particular, the Cardinal struggled with their service, committing 22 errors in the match, including nine in the first set alone. Throughout the match, Stanford outhit UCSB .367 to. 358, but its sloppy play in the first two sets held the team back.

In the third set, Stanford came out with a revitalized attack. While UCSB kept the set very tight and the score was tied eight times, the Cardinal remained on top, led by seven kills from senior outside hitter Madison Hayden. Hayden would post 20 kills on the night for the third time this season.

The fourth went similarly, as the Cardinal pulled away with a three-point cushion that they more or less maintained until their 25-21 set win. As the teams geared up for a decisive fifth set, the momentum appeared to be on Stanford’s side.

The teams were neck-and-neck until a series of Cardinal attack errors gave UCSB a two-point lead at 7-5. Stanford tied it back up at 9-9, but the Gauchos kept the lead from there, taking the set and the match with a 15-12 fifth-set win.

Senior setter James Shaw recorded a season-best 56 assists, and middle blockers Conrad Kaminski and Kevin Rakestraw both managed double-digit kills, with 13 and 11, respectively.

An at-large bid for the NCAA tournament is unlikely, so the season will probably end here for the Cardinal. The team will lose four seniors – Shaw, Kaminski, Hayden and Alex Stephanus – to graduation.

 

Contact Olivia Hummer at ohummer ‘at’ stanford.edu.

Olivia Hummer '17 is a managing editor of The Daily's sports section and writes about volleyball, football and baseball. When she's not filling in as an emergency copy editor, she can be found curled up in a ball bemoaning the misfortunes of her beloved Seattle Mariners or cursing the misuse of the Stanford Athletics logo. Olivia is a senior majoring in history from Covina, California, and can be reached at ohummer 'at' stanford.edu.

Login or create an account