(Photo: Trey Lanthier/WCSN)
No. 1: Stanford (last week: No. 1), 18-0 (8-0)
Stanford is now off to its best start since 1994 (20-0) after beating Colorado and Utah on the road. However, the weekend was anything but easy for the Cardinal, as they were pushed to five sets for the first time in conference play when they traveled to Boulder. Going into the fourth set down 2-1 against the Buffaloes, Stanford’s efficient attack helped them to stay undefeated, notably behind the efforts of junior middle blocker Inky Ajanaku’s 16 kills at a .481 clip. Junior setter Madi Bugg also earned Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honors after picking 32 digs on the weekend, including a career-high 17 against Colorado. Stanford continued their dominant stride against Utah, and they will look to stay perfect on the season when the welcome No. 17 UCLA and No. 18 USC to Palo Alto this weekend.
No. 3: Washington (last week: No. 3), 19-0 (8-0)
The Huskies took a trip to the state of Arizona and stayed perfect with strong performances against No. 15 Arizona and No. 18 Arizona State. On Friday against the Sun Devils, Washington was held to a season-low .202 hitting percentage, but they relied on strong defense to hold ASU to .103 for the match en route to a sweep. In Tucson, Washington fought back from ten points down in the first set, bringing the deficit to one before dropping the set 24-26. However, behind senior outside hitter Krista Vansant’s 24 kills, Washington would go on to sweep the following three sets. Vansant also became the fifth Husky in program history to rack up 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her career. The Huskies stay home this weekend, welcoming Utah and Colorado to Seattle.
No. 11: Oregon (last week: 10), 15-3 (5-3)
The Ducks split their matches against No. 17 UCLA and No. 18 USC this weekend at home. Against UCLA, they found themselves in an offensive frenzy as they hit .330 for the match, but the Bruins hit .441 themselves as they dropped the Ducks in four sets. Oregon regained their form against USC, holding the dangerous serves from the Women of Troy to just one ace. Senior outside hitter Liz Brenner led the attack, racking up 16 kills and 19 digs to pace her team to a four-set win. Oregon looks to continue their momentum as they host the Arizona schools in midweek games on Wednesday and Friday.
No. 15: Arizona (last week: 16), 16-4 (5-3)
The Wildcats split their weekend against Washington State and No. 3 Washington. Against the Cougars, Arizona continued its stellar defensive play as five Wildcats picked up double-digit digs as part of a straight-sets victory. Senior outside hitter Madi Kingdon also continued her heavy workload, racking up 18 kills on 61 swings. On Sunday, Arizona faltered against the undefeated Huskies. In a rare sight, the Wildcats were outdug, 58-57 in the sweep by Washington. They will look to get back on track as they travel to the state of Oregon to face off against No. 11 Oregon and Oregon State.
No. 17: UCLA (last week: 19), 14-5 (5-3)
UCLA likely had the strongest weekend of any team in the conference, and once again, senior outside hitter Karsta Lowe was the catalyst. In an upset over No. 11 Oregon, Lowe set a career-high with 33 kills at a blistering .473 clip to lead the Bruins. Her 33 kills were also the most by any Bruin in the rally-scoring era since 2001. She would add onto that performance to steady her team to a five-set victory against Oregon State, racking up 21 kills to pace the offense. Lowe remains the country’s leader with 6.03 kills per set and was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week for the fourth time this season. Freshman outside hitter Reily Buechler also earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for the second time this season, racking up a total of 26 kills, 19 digs and seven blocks over the weekend. UCLA hopes to continue their streak when they travel north to play No. 1 Stanford and Cal.
No. 18: Arizona State (last week: 17), 14-6 (4-4)
Despite the return of junior middle blocker Whitney Follette, the Sun Devils stumbled out of the gate against Washington, getting held to a .103 hitting percentage for the match. Against Washington State, another slow start had ASU down two sets, but behind the efforts junior outside hitter Macey Gardner, the Sun Devils rallied to win the next three sets and scrape out the win. Gardner tallied 25 kills and a career-high 23 digs. She was aided by junior middle blocker Mercedes Binns’ career-high 14 kills at a .440 clip as well. With the Sun Devil offense back at full strength, they will look to come away with their first weekend sweep in Pac-12 play as they travel to Oregon to play No. 11 Oregon and Oregon State.
No. 19: Southern California (last week: 18), 11-7 (4-4)
USC saw its three-match winning streak snapped by No. 11 Oregon last Friday after junior outside hitter Samantha Bricio was held to just one service ace in the match. However, against Oregon State, the Women of Troy finally got the performance that they became accustomed to last season out of sophomore opposite Ebony Nwanebu as she racked up 20 kills at a .513 clip to pace USC to a four-set victory. If she can continue to produce at even half that rate, it is possible that USC will find the stride that had them ranked as high as No. 6 early in the season. They will be tested soon, as they travel north to face off against Cal and No. 1 Stanford this weekend.
Unranked:
California: 8-10 (1-8)
Colorado: 12-8 (4-4)
Oregon State: 13-6 (3-5)
Utah: 12-7 (2-6)
Washington State: 10-10 (1-7)
