Utah Volleyball Set For Road Matches at #8 Stanford, Cal

Match 24: Utah (13-10, 6-6 Pac-12) at Stanford (16-4, 11-1 Pac-12)
Friday, Nov. 4 | 8 p.m. MT
Stanford, Calif. | Maples Pavilion
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Watch: Pac-12 Insider
 
Match 25: Utah (13-10, 6-6 Pac-12) at California (7-15, 0-12 Pac-12)
Sunday, Nov. 6 | 1 p.m. MT
Salt Lake City | Jon M. Huntsman Center
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Watch: Pac-12 Bay Area

MATCH WEEK
Utah Volleyball returns to the road to continue Pac-12 play, heading to the Bay Area. Utah is set to take on eighth-ranked Stanford this Friday, Nov. 4, at 8 p.m. MT to open the weekend. The match will be played at Maples Pavilion and will be streamed on Pac-12 Insider. Then, Utah closes out the road trip against California on Sunday, Nov. 6. First serve is set for 1 p.m. MT at Haas Pavilion, and will be aired on Pac-12 Bay Area.

QUICK HITS
• Madelyn Robinson has posted double-digit kills in every match this season and is 10th nationally with 4.67 kills per set.
• KJ Burgess leads all freshmen in the Pac-12 with 1.27 blocks per set and is third among freshmen in the nation.
• Vanessa Ramirez has had the most or at least tied for the most digs on the team in 21 of 23 matches this season.
• Utah plays six of its final eight matches on the road.
• Utah has the 16th toughest schedule in the nation this season, while the Utes are No. 39 in the RPI rankings this week.
• Utah swept the meetings against Stanford in the spring of 2021, while the Cardinal took both matches last year and the first meeting this season back on Oct. 9.
• Utah has won the last six meetings against California, which includes four-straight sweeps.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
• Madelyn Robinson is second in the Pac-12 and No. 10 in the nation with 4.67 kills per set.
• KJ Burgess is fifth in the Pac-12 in blocks per set (1.27) and is No. 43 nationally, while she ranks first among freshmen in the Pac-12 and third in the nation.
• Vanessa Ramirez leads the Pac-12 and is No. 88 in the nation with 4.33 digs per set.
• Allie Olsen is fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.365) and No. 51 nationally, while Burgess is fifth in the Pac-12 (.357) and No. 66 nationally.
• Utah is fifth in the Pac-12 and No. 38 in the nation with 13.76 kills per set.
• Utah is sixth in the Pac-12 and No. 55 in the nation with 12.49 assists per set.
• Utah leads the Pac-12 with 15.06 digs per set.
 
RALLYING AROUND ROBINSON
Madelyn Robinson is playing like the AVCA All-Region and All-Pac-12 player she is this season, taking leadership over the Utes and leading the team with 4.67 kills per set. The Highland, Utah native ranks 10th nationally in kills per set and has averaged 5.11 kills per set since conference play started. Robinson recently posted a career high 28 kills against Oregon in just four sets, which upped her previous career high by two kills (26, at Purdue in five sets). On the Oregon trip, Robinson averaged 6.57 kills per set on .354 hitting to lead the team against Oregon and Oregon State. Robinson has recorded double-digit kills in every match this season and has led the team in kills in all but one match that she has played in. She has also collected three double-doubles this year. She earned her first Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week award on Sept. 5, following her weekend at Purdue where she had two matches of 20-plus kills, which included a then-career high of 26 kills vs. Purdue. She has reached the 20-kill mark in four matches this season, while recording more than 15 kills in 11 outings.
 
BURGESS BRINGING IT
Ute freshman KJ Burgess has been a force at the net and is fifth in the Pac-12 with 1.27 blocks per set, which is the most among freshmen in the conference and third-most among freshmen nationally. The freshman from Alpine, Utah is also fifth in the Pac-12 with a .357 hitting percentage and has hit .411 since the start of Pac-12 play, which ranks second in the Pac-12. Burgess has hit .429 or better in six of the last seven matches with the other match coming in at a .333 clip. She posted a season-best .800 hitting percentage to help guide the Utes to a sweep over No. 24 USC when she recorded nine kills on 10 swings. She tied a season-high 10 kills against Stanford on .625 hitting, and has posted just two hitting errors in the last seven matches. Against Washington State and Washington, Burgess totaled 11 blocks to lead the team, while the first year Ute hit .500 with zero hitting errors between the two matches.
 
RAMIREZ RUNNING THE BACK ROW
Utah's starting libero Vanessa Ramirez has taken over the back row this season, leading the Pac-12 Conference in digs per set to this point. Ramirez is averaging a league-best 4.33 digs per set this season, and has so far averaged a league-best 4.51 digs per set during Pac-12 play. She has posted double-digit digs in all but three matches this season and has tallied 20 or more digs in six matches. In Los Angeles, Ramirez led the Utes with her sixth 20-dig match of the year after collecting 22 digs at USC. At the Purdue tournament, she posted two matches of 20-plus digs, which were both career high marks. She first posted a personal-best 25 digs against Milwaukee before upping the career high to 27 digs, which she recorded against Purdue. Ramirez has had the most or at least tied for the most digs on the team in 21 of 23 matches this season.

SCOUTING #8 STANFORD
Stanford has won 10-straight matches to claim sole possession of first place in the Pac-12 standings, sitting at 11-1 in conference play and 16-5 overall this season. The Cardinal recently took a five-set win over then-No. 19 Washington in Seattle after sweeping Washington State the match before. Stanford has earned a sweep in half of its Pac-12 matches and were ranked No. 8 by the NCAA DI Volleyball Committee prior to last weekend's matches. Stanford ranks in the top-10 nationally in assists per set (#8,13.30), blocks per set (#8, 2.82), and kills per set (#9, 14.25). The Card are also 14th nationally with a .284 hitting percentage. Kami Miner is 10th in the nation with 11.19 assists per set, while Sami Francis ranks 10th with 1.45 blocks per set, which leads the Pac-12. Kendall Kipp leads the attack with 4.04 kills per set, which ranks third in the conference and No. 39 nationally.
 
SCOUTING CAL
Cal has yet to pick up a conference win as the Golden Bears have dropped their last 12 matches. Cal took Oregon State to five sets and took a set off USC, but have been swept in its other Pac-12 matches, including the match in Salt Lake City against the Utes. Cal is led by its blocking efforts, averaging 2.27 blocks per set to rank No. 92 in the nation. Lydia Grote leads the team with 3.58 kills per set, while Mikayla Hayden and Sophie Scott are the top blockers on the team. Tara DeSa is fourth in the Pac-12 with 3.95 digs per set.
 
STANDOUT STATS
• Utah is 11-0 when leading in hitting percentage.
• Utah is 6-0 when hitting .300 or better, and 10-2 when hitting .250 or better.
• Utah has recorded more digs or tied its opponent in digs in 19 of 23 matches.
• Seven Utes have recorded at least one match of 10 or more kills this season.
• Six Utes have recorded at least two matches of 10 or more digs this season.
• Madelyn Robinson has recorded double-digit kills in every match and has led the team in kills in all but one match that she has played in.
• Vanessa Ramirez has posted double-digit digs in 20 of 23 matches this season.
• Emily Smith has posted 12 double-doubles this season.
  
UP NEXT
Utah returns to Salt Lake City for its final home matches of the season, hosting Oregon State and Oregon. Utah will take on Oregon State on Thursday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. MT. Utah will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Title IX and women in sports at the match against the Beavers. The Utes turn around to host Oregon on Sunday, Nov. 13, at 1 p.m. MT for senior day. Utah will honor Madelyn Robinson, Megan Yett and Emily Smith in their last matches at the Huntsman Center.